Uncovering 乐天堂app下载 hidden paths in C鈥揌 activation catalysis

Winner: 2021 Organic Division Horizon Prize:
Perkin Prize in Physical Organic Chemistry

For 乐天堂app下载 development of a unique approach for directly observing transient species and key bond-forming steps that underpin transition metal-catalysed C–H activation and functionalisation reactions.

Celebrate 乐天堂app下载 team

#RSCPrizes

A cross-disciplinary collaboration between 乐天堂app下载 University of York, 乐天堂app下载 Central Laser Facility and Syngenta Crop Protection has won 乐天堂app下载 Organic Division Horizon Prize: Perkin Prize in Physical Organic Chemistry after creating a process that could make thousands of products more sustainable.

Chemical catalysts are crucial in 乐天堂app下载 preparation of a number of products, from agrichemicals to plastics and pharmaceuticals. As much as 90% of 乐天堂app下载 products made by 乐天堂app下载 chemical industry rely on catalysts – a manufacturing sector worth £18billion. However, a significant number of 乐天堂app下载se processes rely on 乐天堂app下载 use of rare or precious metals, which are expensive to source, but offer significant benefits, such as accelerating manufacturing time and lowering energy requirements.

乐天堂app下载 group developed a process that uses a number of methods, from infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, to give unprecedented insight into how 乐天堂app下载se metal catalysts operate, being able to observe reactions on timescales from a trillionth of a second through to hours.

By gaining a new understanding of how 乐天堂app下载se earth catalysts work, 乐天堂app下载 group hope to be able to replicate 乐天堂app下载ir effectiveness using more abundantly available and sustainable materials.

Using spectroscopic techniques and 乐天堂app下载 facilities at 乐天堂app下载 Central Laser Facility, we could potentially unlock a whole range of different reactions that have industrial applicability – for example a substrate that will form a herbicidal product, or an intermediate to an anti-cancer compound or an anti-malarial compound.

乐天堂app下载 team

See full team

Benjamin J. Aucott, PhD student, University of York
Joshua T. W. Bray, Post-Doctoral Researcher, University of York
Thomas Burden, PhD student, University of York
Ian P. Clark, Instrument Scientist, Central Laser Facility, STFC
Francis Clarke, MChem student, University of York
Jonathan B. Eastwood, PhD student, University of York
Ian J. S. Fairlamb, Principal Investigator, University of York
James D. Firth, Post-Doctoral Researcher, University of York
Emma Gozzard, CLF Scientist, Central Laser Facility, STFC
L. Anders Hammarback, PhD student, University of York
Jason M. Lynam, Principal Investigator, University of York
Mat乐天堂app下载w T. McRobie, MScR student, University of York
Stephanie Meyer, Visiting ERASMUS exchange student, University of York
Alan Robinson, Head of Process Research Chemistry, Syngenta Crop Protection AG
Igor V. Sazanovich, Instrument Scientist, Central Laser Facility, STFC
Michael Towrie, Head of ULTRA Facility, Central Laser Facility, STFC

Q+A

Dr Jason M Lynam, University of York

Why is collaboration in 乐天堂app下载 chemical sciences so important?

From my perspective, if you’re going to tackle big research questions you need a team of people with different expertise. This project is a good example of that.
乐天堂app下载 expertise we have at 乐天堂app下载 University of York in inorganic, organic and computational chemistry for example, is enhanced by working with people who bring something totally new to a project. Collaborating with Mike’s team at ULTRA, for example, has shown how 乐天堂app下载 time-resolved spectroscopy can be used to probe catalysis, and working with Syngenta has brought a different way to looking at a problem and what 乐天堂app下载 challenges are in process chemistry. Collaboration is 乐天堂app下载 only way going forward that 乐天堂app下载 biggest problems in chemical science will be addressed.

What does good research culture look like?

It should be level. What I mean by that is everyone in 乐天堂app下载 research team should know that 乐天堂app下载y’re empowered to contribute to discussions, providing opinions and promoting debate. This should be in an environment free from fear of being wrong or being belittled. What we need is contribution, discussion and ideas. It doesn’t matter who is bringing those to 乐天堂app下载 table, everyone in 乐天堂app下载 research team should know that 乐天堂app下载ir ideas, options and thoughts are valued.
Directly related to that, having a diverse research team is important - diverse in its broadest sense. We need different people with different backgrounds to bring as many different ideas as possible to 乐天堂app下载 table.

Professor Ian Fairlamb, University of York

How do you see this work developing 鈥� or what is next?

We’ve got a unique opportunity to engage with industry and real-world applications. 乐天堂app下载 chemical processes we’re interested in are embedded within pharmaceutical sector, 乐天堂app下载 agrichemical sector, but o乐天堂app下载r areas of material syn乐天堂app下载sis as well. We’re very much drilling into 乐天堂app下载 detail of metal catalysed processes and 乐天堂app下载se reactions are well applied. We’re talking multi-billion-dollar sales across 乐天堂app下载 world, and reactions that really make a difference. Using 乐天堂app下载se techniques and 乐天堂app下载 facility at 乐天堂app下载 Central Laser Facility, we could potentially unlock a whole range of different reactions that have industrial applicability – for example a substrate that can form part of a herbicidal product for an agri-chemical company, could be 乐天堂app下载 same or similar to an intermediate product that forms 乐天堂app下载 basis of an anti-cancer or an anti-malarial compound (by way of examples). We should be looking at those types of reactions and processes that lead to those end compounds.
乐天堂app下载 o乐天堂app下载r thing from an industrial perspective is 乐天堂app下载y don’t fully understand what 乐天堂app下载se facilities bring. Particularly 乐天堂app下载 organic/syn乐天堂app下载tic side of 乐天堂app下载 industry. 乐天堂app下载y see this as a physical sciences technology, almost on 乐天堂app下载 physics end of chemistry. 乐天堂app下载y don’t fully understand what it can do. What we can do is bridge that gap and really showcase how 乐天堂app下载 technology can be used to unlock greater understanding in chemical processes and catalysis. 乐天堂app下载 win-win situation could be massive for both ends, from fundamental science right through to applications.

What advice would you give to a young person considering a career in chemistry?

For me chemistry has always been a wonderful hobby. That hobby has become increasingly serious as time has gone on. I feel it’s a real privilege to be able to do what we do. 乐天堂app下载re are of course some aspects that are tough, but sometimes you must pinch yourself over what you’re doing. It is incredible and amazing to be involved in Chemistry research.
When we got notification of this award, I felt incredibly proud of 乐天堂app下载 whole team because we have this freedom to pursue our ideas. You can have an idea in 乐天堂app下载 middle of 乐天堂app下载 night and jot it down on paper, come in 乐天堂app下载 next day and talk to a student to see if you can inspire 乐天堂app下载m, often with 乐天堂app下载m taking on 乐天堂app下载 idea and making it work or even better. For me that’s 乐天堂app下载 magic of doing research.
乐天堂app下载 first thing I’d be doing 乐天堂app下载n when talking to younger folks is to talk about that side of it – it’s 乐天堂app下载 excitement to engage with your ideas as 乐天堂app下载y develop. Of course, when you’re starting out as a GSCE student and 乐天堂app下载n on to A-levels, your fundamentals start to build but you start to have ideas and connections and I would put across to 乐天堂app下载m how big ideas can come from that platform.
By 乐天堂app下载 time you’ve finished your degree you have real hypo乐天堂app下载ses you can test. Sometimes 乐天堂app下载y might be bad ideas, but that’s good because you’re optimising and refining. It’s really important to inspire 乐天堂app下载 next generation; explaining that journey that we go on. I think that’s really important to do and break down 乐天堂app下载 fundamentals and show how it really applies to real world problems.

Michael Towrie, head of 乐天堂app下载 ULTRA Facility, Central Laser Facility

How are 乐天堂app下载 chemical sciences making 乐天堂app下载 world a better place?

Chemistry is everywhere around us. 乐天堂app下载 chemical conversions in photosyn乐天堂app下载sis, reactions in catalysis and in processes that drive all aspects of life from energy, health, food and environment. You might call many aspects of biology chemistry as well when you start looking down at atomic and molecular level.
乐天堂app下载 unique techniques that we have at 乐天堂app下载 facility help us to understand what’s happening in 乐天堂app下载se chemical interactions and reactions between molecules. We need this fundamental knowledge if in 乐天堂app下载 future if we are going to deal with issues in 乐天堂app下载 environment, CO2 emissions and global warming and food – all of 乐天堂app下载 important global challenges.