Design and Applications of Selective Olefin Metathesis Catalysts

Dr. Robert H. Grubbs, Nóbelsverðlaunahafi og prófessor í efnafræði við California Institute of Technology, flytur fyrirlestur á málstofu í efnafræði og lífefnafræði undir heitinu Design and Applications of Selective Olefin Metathesis Catalysts

Ágrip

Olefin Metathesis has become a tool for the synthesis of complex organic molecules and materials. The key to the development of these applications has been the discovery and study of organometallic complexes that will efficiently catalyze the reaction in the presence of standard funcitional groups. The next advances resulted from the development of more selective  catalysts and complexes that show high turn over numbers in important transformations.  Over the past several years two families of complexes have been developed that produce high Z selectivity in the cross metathesis of terminal olefins.  Some of these catalysts now produce Z olefins in >95 Z at >95% conversions with high turn over numbers.   The next challenge is to produce a catalyst that produces olefins with high E selectivity. A number of strategies are being developed for the construction of such catalysts. 

Ina addition to the synthesis of complex organic molecules, the catalysts can be used to construct well defined polymer structures that have an array of functions.  Key to the synthesis of these materials has been the understanding of the mechanisms of the polymerization process and the development of catalysts that allow careful control of the microstructure of the materials. 

Although there are now a number of commercial processes based on olefin metathesis, others will only become possible with even more selective and efficient catalysts.