Acquisition of a Console for a 400 MHz NMR Spectrometer

William Marsh Rice University, Houston TX

Investigators

Abstract

With this award from the Chemistry Research Instrumentation and Facilities (CRIF) Program, the Department of Chemistry at William Marsh Rice University will acquire a console for a 400 MHz NMR Spectrometer. This equipment will enable researchers to carry out studies on a) metallocene-alumoxane interactions; b) solution structural characterization of tri-metallic molecules; c) characterization of the product distribution and relative yield from the facile hydrogen/deuterium exchange in organic and organometallic aromatic compounds catalyzed by Group 13-mercury complexes; d) synthesis of molecules of precise length and constitution for electronic, photonic, and template self-replication applications; e) development of novel organic synthetic methods and the total synthesis of natural products; f) metal atom chemistry; g) chemistry of novel aromatic systems; h) terpene biosynthesis using recombinant microorganisms; and g) the synthesis of single-stranded DNA oligomers containing nonnatural nucleotides. Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is the most powerful tool available to chemists for the elucidation of the structure of molecules. It is used to identify unknown substances, to characterize specific arrangements of atoms within molecules, and to study the dynamics of interactions between molecules in solution. Access to state-of-the-art NMR spectrometry is essential to chemists who are carrying out frontier research. The results from these NMR studies will have an impact in a number of areas including materials chemistry and biochemistry.