RUI: Harnessing the redox chemistry of silver: fundamental studies of oxidation chemistry at dinuclear silver catalysts

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With support from the Chemical Catalysis Program in the Division of Chemistry of the National Science Foundation, Professor Michael Campbell at Barnard College is exploring routes to new kinds of silver-based catalysts. Catalysts speed up chemical reactions and often contribute to producing specific, desired products. The potential of silver-based catalysts has been largely overlooked because little is known about how silver behaves during the steps required for key catalytic processes. In order to accomplish these goals, Professor Campbell is designing new structures that will induce novel behavior of silver-based catalysts. In some cases, multiple silver ions appear to cooperate in chemical reactions, but the products are too fragile to be of practical value. By systematically changing in the structure of the silver compounds, a new generation of rugged, useful catalysts may be produced. The grant also supports the training of undergraduate students for careers in science, with specific emphasis on developing skills in the laboratory and in scientific communication. A particular emphasis is placed on increasing the participation of women and other underrepresented groups in scientific research. The grant is also supporting a science literacy campaign involving the broader community of students at Barnard College.With support from the Chemical Catalysis Program in the Division of Chemistry of the National Science Foundation, Professor Michael Campbell at Barnard College is exploring routes to new kinds of silver-based catalysts. Despite silver’s relatively high abundance and lower cost compared to other late transition metals, homogeneous redox catalysis with silver is underdeveloped. This is fundamentally due to a lack of chemical design principles for controlling reactivity. To date there has been little data on oxidized silver complexes that are relevant to catalysis. Professor Campbell is systematically exploring the redox chemistry of dinuclear silver complexes, with a focus on the role of silver–silver interactions in facilitating redox processes. The results of these studies are used to inform catalyst design for nitrene transfer and other group transfer reactions that furnish valuable products from hydrocarbon substrates. By focusing on redox catalysis with silver, this research ultimately aims to develop synthetically useful reactivity than can supplant more commonly used rare-metal catalysts such as rhodium and iridium. The Campbell group at Barnard College trains undergraduate students for future careers in science. As a liberal arts college for women, Barnard is particularly effective in promoting the participation of women and other underrepresented groups in science.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.