CAREER: Rhodium-Catalyzed Oxidative Functionalization Reactions

化学分部的化学催化项目支持伊利诺伊大学香槟分校的Kami L. Hull教授的研究，以开发合成含羰基化合物的新方法。这些物种在商品化学工业以及制药和特种化学合成中极为重要。然而，它们的制备是复杂的，并且经常涉及产生不希望的副产品。该项目的主要目标之一是最大限度地提高这些物种合成的经济性。开发新的方法以减少浪费为目标，用于合成酰胺、酯、硫酯和酮，所有这些都是大规模化学过程中重要的起始材料或中间体。这项工作的更广泛的影响包括有可能最大限度地减少与羰基化合物合成有关的浪费，从而更好地利用我们在精细化学品和商品化学品合成中的自然资源。此外，还有一个外联部分，旨在提高农村儿童的科学素养，并鼓励这些学生在STEM学科中接受高等教育。开发了新的铑基金属催化剂，通过脱氢或转移氢化，使醇和亲核试剂直接偶联，用于合成酰胺、酯、硫酯和酮。此外，还研究了手性羰基化合物的合成。催化剂和有机产物在需要时通过核磁共振光谱，红外光谱和x射线晶体学进行了充分的表征。为了增加对更大社区的科学理解，制定了一项名为“下一代伊利诺伊州科学家”（NGIS）的外展计划。国家地理信息系统的目标是将科学推广到农村社区。在伊利诺伊大学香槟分校（University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign） 50英里半径范围内的农村小学，与四年级学生合作，开发了一系列以共同核心课程为基础的实验。

The Chemical Catalysis Program of the Chemistry Division supports the research of Professor Kami L. Hull of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign to develop new approaches for the synthesis of carbonyl containing compounds. Such species are extremely important in the commodity chemical industry as well as in pharmaceutical and specialty chemical syntheses. Their preparations, however, are complicated and often involve the production of undesirable by-products. One of the primary goals of this project is to maximize the economy of the synthesis of these species. The development of new methodologies that minimize waste are targeted for the synthesis of amides, esters, thioesters, and ketones, all of which are important starting materials or intermediates in large scale chemical processes. The broader impacts this work include the potential to minimize the waste associated with the synthesis of carbonyl compounds, thereby making better use of our natural resources in the synthesis of fine and commodity chemicals. Additionally, there is an outreach component that aims to increase the scientific literacy of rural children and encourage these students to pursue higher education in STEM disciplines.New rhodium based metal-catalysts are developed that allow for the direct coupling of alcohols and nucleophiles, through dehydrogenation or transfer hydrogenation, for the synthesis of amides, esters, thioesters and ketones. Further, synthesis of alpha and beta chiral carbonyl compounds is explored. The catalysts and organic products are fully characterized by NMR spectroscopy, IR spectroscopy, and X-ray crystallography, when needed. To increase the scientific understanding of the greater community, an outreach program entitled Next Generation of Illinois Scientists (NGIS) is developed. The goals of NGIS is to bring scientific outreach to rural communities. Working with fourth grade students at rural elementary schools within a 50 mile radius of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign a series of experiments is developed that builds on the Common Core Curriculum.