CAREER: Controlling Solid State Reactivity via Linear Templates

University Of Iowa, Iowa City IA

Investigators

Abstract

The aim of this project is to develop an approach for conducting solid state chemical synthesis that provides the degrees of synthetic freedom of the liquid phase. The method utilizes molecules, as linear templates, to direct alignment of reactive sites using the strength and directionality of hydrogen bonds. The goals include: (1) expanding the methods to reaction homology by developing families of templates and reactants and (2) applying products of the approach for the design of a class of porous crystalline materials known as inverted metal-organic frameworks. These materials will be engineered to possess tunable pores of nanoscale dimensions lined with organic functionality. The ability to synthesize the organic building blocks of these materials in the solid state means that access to porous solids not achievable by other synthetic methods may be realized. The program seeks to integrate research ideas with education at the local, regional, and national level through events such as campus workshops that introduce students to green chemistry and materials science. Solid-state chemical techniques provide an environmentally-friendly, or 'green' alternative to synthetic processes that rely on toxic organic solvents or routes to new molecules and materials with unique properties. For example, strategies for the design of porous crystalline solids are of much interest owing to their promise to deliver materials with properties that improve upon traditional and industrially important inorganic solids such as zeolites, a class of materials i