Speaker: Robert H. Grubbs, Victor and Elizabeth Atkins Professor of Chemistry, Caltech – 2005 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
3:30 p.m.
Refreshments will be served from 3:00 p.m.
Auditorium (building 20)
Ruthenium-based olefin metathesis catalysts have provided new routes to olefins, which appear in a variety of structures. Their functional group tolerance and ease of use allow their application in the synthesis of multifunctional bioactive molecules that are being explored as pharmaceutical agents. The same systems are also useful for the synthesis of an array of new materials from multifunctional polymers to supramolecular systems. Underlying these developments was the discovery of active catalysts with controlled selectivity through the synthesis of new ligands that control the geometry of the intermediate carbene and metallacycle complexes. As these catalysts have become more widely used, a number of commercial applications have been developed. The pathway to development of this technology provides a case study of how fundamental science can develop into real products.
About the President’s Distinguished Visiting Speaker Series
The President’s Distinguished Visiting Speaker Series feature lectures by eminent researchers renowned for their cutting-edge interdisciplinary research.
Click here for Robert H. Grubbs’ full biography.
