This LO is a problem-set-style literature discussion that leads students through a critical analysis of an interesting but flawed paper from the recent chemical literature.  Students use the questions to help them work through the paper prior to class, providing plenty of raw material for an in-class discussion about various aspects of the work from a mechanistic organometallic perspective.  The questions help students critically analyze substrate tables, spectroscopic data, and computational results from DFT.

This set of questions is intended to guide students through an excellent article by Jeff Byers and co-workers that describes the us

This is a literature assignment for a junior/senior level course. Guiding questions are provided to assist students with reading the article so that they see the value and importance of developing catalysts for polymerization reactions. This assignment is based upon the article 

The literature discussion is based on a paper by Gagné (Organometallics 2015, 34, 2707).  In this work, the in situ generation of benzyne is examined. The benzyne coordinates to a platinum center with a tridentate (pincer) phosphine ligand and a methyl group. This provides an opportunity to discuss the characterization of compounds that have NMR active nuclei that are not 100% naturally abundant. Protonation of the benzyne compound results in the formation of toluene. Different mechanisms are considered.

This literature discussion is based on a paper detailing the structure and reactivity of the title compound (Organometallics, 2016, 35,

This literature discussion is based on a short paper describing a series of Group VI metal carbonyl compounds that have pincer ligands (Organometallics, 2016

This Guided Literature Discussion was assigned as a course project, and is the result of work originated by students Stefanie Barnett and Katelyn Yowell.  It is based on the article “Synthesis, Electrochemistry, and Reactivity of Half-Sandwich Ruthenium Complexes Bearing Metallocene-Based Bisphosphines”, Shaw, A.P.; Norton, J.R.; Bucella, D.; Sites, L.A.; Kleinbach, S.S.; Jarem, D.A.; Bocage, K.M.; Nataro, C. Organometallics 2009, 28, 3804-3814.

This literature discussion is based on one of early papers detailing the mechanism for the Monsanto acetic acid process (J. Am. Chem.

This literature discussion is based on a paper by Bill Jones and Frank Feher (J. Am. Chem. Soc., 1986, 108, 4814-4819). In this paper, they study the activation of aromatic C-H bonds by a rhodium complex. Through careful experimental design, they were able to examine isotope effects on the selectivity of the reaction. Analysis of the rate data allowed them to prepare a reaction coordinate free energy diagram. This paper also introduces the effects of C-H bond breaking in early or late transition states on the vibrational energy spacing at both ground and excited states.