RUI: Combatting Organophosphate Pesticides with New Molybdenum-based Catalysts in Water

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The Environmental Chemical Sciences Program in the Division of Chemistry at the National Science Foundation supports the research of Professor Louis Y. Kuo at Lewis and Clark College that will involve undergraduate students. Inquiry-based research will be performed in diverse fields including organic synthesis, chemical catalysis, and coordination and phosphorus chemistry. With Professor Kuo's guidance, undergraduates will actively participate in a hypothesis-based investigations driven by the collection of data and the analysis of results spanning different chemical disciplines. Written and oral dissemination of their results will be communicated at local and international venues. The PI has a proven track record of working with undergraduates on projects involving OP chemistry. In the past 20 years, the PI has mentored 37 undergraduate and high school students and has produced 21 publications with student coauthors. Another outstanding feature of this project is the outreach and involvement of high school students and a high school teacher through summer research. This collaboration will impact STEM education and potentially contribute to greater interest by students in sustainable environmental chemistry.The research will examine the catalytic hydrolysis of sulfur-containing organophosphates (OP) by common, air stable and safe molybdenum oxide complexes. The OP under examination are sulfur-containing compounds that fall into two classes. The first class is the model compound O,S-diethylphenyl phosphonothioate (DEPP) in which further derivatizations are readily accomplished; DEPP also serves as a safe mimic of OP neurotoxins. The second class of compounds is "live" OP pesticides in common agricultural uses which are Phosmet, Chlorpyrifos and Malathion. This project provides mechanistic information on the hydrolytic degradation of sulfur-containing pesticides. This fundamental investigation focuses on OP hydrolysis through nucleophilic attack and phosphate activation by oxo-molybdates. It also tests how soil (i.e. clay) affects the various routes for OP hydrolysis by these new molybdenum complexes. The research results will provide fundamental understanding of soil-effects on important hydrolytic processes for pesticide degradation.