Department of Chemistry

James H. Espenson

Transition Metal Catalysts: Mechanisms & Applications.

Transition metal complexes afford endless excitement and novelty. In our research they serve:

as catalysts for chemical reactions
as participants in atom-transfer mechanisms
as reagents in new reactions
as templates for coordination phenomena offering new structural and electronic insights

The research emphasis in our group has been directed towards oxo- and thio-complexes of the element rhenium.

Mainly these are compounds of Re(VII) and Re(V) because high oxidation states are best for the purposes mentioned.

One active catalyst is

MeReO(edt)(PPh₃)

The crystal structure of this oxygen-atom-transfer catalyst is shown.

Author of more than 350 research publications and the book Chemical Kinetics and Reaction Mechanisms (McGraw-Hill).