Activation of Oxygen: Mechanistic Aspects of Electron Transfer and Atom Transfer

Iowa State University, Ames IA

Investigators

Abstract

This award by the Inorganic, Bioinorganic and Organometallic Chemistry Program to Professor Andreja Bakac of Iowa State University is to support research on the development of new methods for generating aqueous chromium(V) ions, to examine the reactivity of oxygen atoms in solution, and to carry out studies on the formation and reactivity of intermediates generated from chromium(II) complexes and molecular oxygen. In a general sense, all of these topics deal with various aspects of oxygen activation and mechanistic oxidative chemistry. The work is expected to produce crucial kinetic data and insight into the reaction mechanisms. The intellectual merit of the proposed research thus lies in the expected contribution to the fundamental understanding of oxygen activation by thermal and photochemical means. The broader impacts of this proposal include the education and training of undergraduate and graduate students and postdoctoral associates. Additionally, mechanistic studies on oxygen activation provide a basis for the development of catalytic processes utilizing molecular oxygen in more environmentally benign reactions. Such chemistry also plays a major role in biological systems owing to the constant and complex interactions between molecular oxygen, metal complexes, and organic matter.