Fluorine-containing molecules and materials improve our quality of life. For example, fluorinated gases are used as refrigerants in the automotive sector, while polymers such as PTFE are common in households. Fluorine is also important for drug discovery and agrochemicals. For all its advantages, the fluorochemicals industry is unsustainable. Nearly all fluorine containing molecules on our planet are synthetic and single use. At the end of their lifetime they are either destroyed or end up contaminating the environment. Environmental contamination has been extremely damaging. Fluorinated molecules have contributed to ozone depletion (chlorofluorocarbons - CFCs), global warming (hydrofluorocarbons - HFCs) and water contamination (polyfluorinated alkyl substances - PFAS).
If we are to continue to depend on fluorine, then we must find ways to reuse and recycle fluorine containing molecules at the end of their lifetime, we must stop our reliance on finite natural sources of inorganic fluoride, and we must prevent unnecessary contamination of our planet.
The ambition of this project is to pioneer new catalytic transformations that allow fluorine atoms and fluorine containing groups to be moved between organic molecules. To do this we aimed to develop homogeneous catalysts to manipulate the fluorine content of organic molecules and gain a detailed mechanistic understanding of how this can be achieved. In the long-term, the understanding that is gained from this project could be used to underpin a future circular economy in which fluorine atoms are conserved and recycled. This venture is vital if we are to limit damage of fluorine containing molecules on our environment and make best use of our remaining natural resources.
