This three-year award supports U.S.-France cooperative research in chemistry between Teddy G. Traylor of the University of California, San Diego, and Daniel Mansuy of the Universite Rene Descartes, Paris, France. The objective of their research is to develop effective catalysts using hydrogen peroxide, dioxygen, or other oxidants. They will examine the potential of catalysts, known as metal porphyrins, which have electronegatively substituted substituents. These will be converted into water soluble forms, soap-like materials, and polymers, and then attached to solid surfaces. The project takes advantage of complementary expertise of the U.S. and French investigators in both porphyrin chemistry and in oxidation catalysis. Catalyzed oxidations of organics, as proposed in this project, have important laboratory and industrial applications. The proposed research could result in significant new catalysts for the oxidation of organic molecules using readily available and inexpensive oxidants, such as hydrogen peroxide.
