Development of new organophosphorus materials for sustainable energy applications

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The proposed research program targets the design of new organophosphorus-based building blocks and materials for practical applications that lower our anthropogenic carbon footprint. The overarching theme of the interdisciplinary program is the efficient and sustainable use, conversion, and/or storage of energy via tailor-made chemical synthesis. To this end, the program covers the full breadth of materials chemistry encompassing the manipulation of matter at the atomic and molecular scale, next to modeling, measuring, and imaging. Over the past decade or so, my research group has carved out a set of highly desirable properties that confirm the high utility of phosphorus-containing building blocks for a variety of sustainable energy applications, particularly those that involve the efficient use of energy.  Moving forward with this foundational knowledge, the most impactful avenues for the proposed program in the next five years are three main thrusts that focus on enabling energy-saving technologies, or to provide a means of storing energy, either as charges or in chemical bonds. The proposed research program will specifically develop novel battery materials that are capable of storing multiple charges, using a building-block and self-assembly approach. It will further involve the targeted development of materials that exhibit thermally-activated delayed fluorescence for application in organic light-emitting devices with improved energy efficiency. Moreover, energy can also efficiently be stored in chemical bonds, particularly in species that can then act as conventional hydrocarbon fuels or non-conventional fuels. A third focus area of the proposal is thus the development of novel conjugated organophosphorus species for metal-free small-molecule activation. It is envisioned that the required energy input for the targeted chemical conversions is photonic in nature. Focus of this part of the proposal will thus be the exploration and development of photocatalytic redox activities of the new species.     This program with its primary focus on next-generation clean energy solutions will enable Canada to take on a leadership position in providing a sustainable future for our planet via new energy-efficient technologies and a considerably diversified energy portfolio.