CAREER: Supramolecular Main Group Coordination Chemistry

University Of Oregon Eugene, Eugene OR

Investigators

Abstract

This CAREER award by the Inorganic, Bioinorganic and Organometallic Chemistry program supports work by Professor Darren Johnson at the University of Oregon to develop a program that links fundamental research in main group supramolecular coordination chemistry to internship opportunities for graduate students in environmental chemistry at regional companies and national laboratories. The research focuses on developing a predictive design strategy for forming self-assembled nanoscale main group supramolecular complexes. By using the unusual coordination geometries of As3+ and Pb2+ to develop a design strategy for forming supramolecular complexes, new supramolecular structure types result, providing three-dimensional molecules that are capable of exhibiting unusual host-guest chemistry. Programming the coordination preferences of these toxic metals into the design strategy will provide new ligands that are not only specific for the targeted metal ions, but also form extremely stable complexes. Students working on this project will have the opportunity to apply what they learn about ligand design to developing materials for remediation and sensing by performing off-campus internships at regional companies and national laboratories. Other educational activities include adding a Peer-Led Team Learning component to the undergraduate organic curriculum at the University of Oregon (UO), adding an immersion lab in polymer synthesis and characterization to improve the problem-solving and team-working skills in our masters-level polymer program, and providing support for the new Women in Graduate Sciences group to run a workshop and seminar series to create new networking and career-development opportunities for the group's members. The research aims to advance the basic science of arsenic and lead coordination chemistry, which will lead to long-term applications in the area of environmental and in vivo toxic metal remediation, sensing and ligand design. The educational activities will 1) provide internship opportunities for students to investigate more applied aspects of their research at regional industry or a national laboratory, 2) add new curricula to undergraduate organic chemistry and masters-level polymer chemistry courses at UO to improve problem-solving and team-working skills, and 3) provide support for a seminar and workshop series for members of the new Women in Graduate Sciences group at UO.