Postdoctoral Fellowship: MPS-Ascend: Ring-opening of Cyclic Ethers Facilitated by Main-group Lewis Acids.

Nathanael Hunter被授予NSF数学和物理科学上升博士后研究奖学金（NSF MPS-Ascend），以开展与扩大STEM代表性不足的群体参与有关的研究和活动计划。Hunter博士的奖学金支持在赞助科学家的指导下进行的题为“MPS-Ascend：由主族刘易斯酸促进的环醚开环”的研究项目。该研究金的主办机构是得克萨斯州农工大学，赞助科学家是弗朗索瓦·加巴特尔博士。 该提案旨在开发有机锑（V）和有机铋（III）化合物作为刘易斯酸可调催化剂，以促进氧杂环丁烷的开环，包括与二氧化碳的共聚。这些催化剂将导致更好的选择性和新的化学转化的发展。通过配位膦供体，有机铋催化剂将允许将手性配体引入铋中心，这将产生手性氧杂环丁烷开环产物。与铋相关的低环境危害也将推动这种化学朝着更可持续的方向发展。PI打算参与外联活动，以进一步增加多样性，公平和包容所有学习化学的人。PI计划继续指导德克萨斯A M大学的本科生和早期研究生，具体目标是增加来自代表性不足群体的学生参与化学研究生水平的研究。PI计划加入几个外展计划，教育小学和中学学生在年轻的时候化学，以进一步吸引未来化学家的兴趣。PI还计划在德州农工大学开发一个新的实践教育项目，为布拉索斯县的高中生将来从事化学科学做好准备。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Nathanael Hunter is awarded an NSF Mathematical and Physical Sciences Ascending Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (NSF MPS-Ascend) to conduct a program of research and activities related to broaden participation by groups underrepresented in STEM. This fellowship to Dr. Hunter supports the research project entitled “MPS-Ascend: Ring-opening of Cyclic Ethers Facilitated by Main-group Lewis Acids” under the mentorship of a sponsoring scientist. The host institution for the fellowship is Texas A&M University, and the sponsoring scientist is Dr. François Gabbaï. This proposal intends to develop organoantimony (V) and organo-bismuth (III) compounds as Lewis acid tunable catalysts to facilitate the ring opening of oxetane including copolymerization with carbon dioxide. These catalysts will lead to better selectivity and to the development of new chemical transformations. The organo-bismuth catalysts, through a coordinating phosphine donor, will allow the introduction of a chiral ligand to the bismuth center, which will generate chiral oxetane ring-opening products. The low environmental hazards associated with bismuth will also push this chemistry in a more sustainable direction.The PI intends to participate in outreach activities to further increase the diversity, equity and inclusion all people studying chemistry. The PI plans to continue mentoring undergraduate and early graduate students at Texas A&M University, with a specific goal to increase the participation of students from underrepresented groups in graduate-level research in chemistry. The PI plans to join several outreach programs to educate primary and secondary school students about chemistry at a young age, to further engage the interest of future chemists. The PI also plans to develop a new hands-on educational program at Texas A&M University to prepare high school students in the greater Brazos County area for future careers in the chemical sciences.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.