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Metalloradical Catalysis - From Fundamental Studies to Applications

Project description

Rational design of sustainable metal catalysts could have far-reaching effects

Most metal-catalysed processes rely on what chemists call 'polar reactivity', where reactions involve the transfer or sharing of two electrons at a time. In the relatively new field of metalloradical catalysis, however, reactions occur with the transfer or sharing of only one electron at a time. While catalysing two-electron polar reactions conventionally relies on rare and expensive metal ions, one-electron metalloradical reactions are accomplished sustainably with catalysts based on abundant and inexpensive transition metals, with applications in fine chemicals, medicine and materials science. The EU-funded MetalloRadiCat project is enhancing understanding of metalloradical reactivity and its associated principles to further rational design of metalloradical catalysts and catalytic processes, particularly with respect to the emerging area of remote functionalisations. The team is focused on novel molecules and functionalities in the context of methane production and activation.

Objective

Over the past decades, metal catalysis has had a tremendous impact in chemistry, its adjacent disciplines and society overall, having gained an omnipresence in academic and industrial research worldwide. Numerous previously unthinkable transformations can nowadays be achieved in a selective and relatively mild manner owing to the metals' unique ability to trigger bond-making and breaking via pathways and principles that are inaccessible to metal-free processes. In this context, the global community has focused primarily on closed-shell, two electron processes for synthetic transformations. By comparison, the field of metalloradical catalysis has seen much less development, although metalloradicals are nature's preferred species to tame radical reactivities under non-precious metal-catalysis in numerous metalloenzymes. This is likely due to our currently limited understanding of metalloradical reactivity and its associated principles, and as such also limited ability to rationally design metalloradical catalysts and catalytic processes. A multidisciplinary approach, which capitalizes on the principles and insights of organic, organometallic and biological processes, will likely be key to meet the next frontier in this promising field. The objective of this proposal is to combine the tools of mechanistic, computational and synthetic organic/organometallic chemistry to explore catalysis with metalloradicals in synthesis, materials research and enzymatic processes. The proposed program will investigate some of the most pertinent questions in relation to the emerging area of remote functionalizations for the selective synthetic access to tailored molecules, olefin migrations and manipulations, and naturally occurring (enzymatic) metalloradical-catalyzed processes in the context of methane production and activation.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

Keywords

Programme(s)

Topic(s)

Funding Scheme

ERC-COG - Consolidator Grant

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Call for proposal

(opens in new window) ERC-2019-COG

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Host institution

RHEINISCH-WESTFAELISCHE TECHNISCHE HOCHSCHULE AACHEN
Net EU contribution
€ 2 000 000,00
Address
TEMPLERGRABEN 55
52062 Aachen
Germany
Region
Nordrhein-Westfalen Köln Städteregion Aachen
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Links
Total cost
€ 2 000 000,00

Beneficiaries (1)