Identifying Organometallic Reaction Classes in a Catalytic Cycle

Submitted by Nancy Williams / Scripps College, Pitzer College, Claremont McKenna College on Tue, 08/28/2012 - 19:01
Description

This contains three parts: A "Pre-Read" section for students to read before coming to class, an in-class worksheet to be worked in groups, and instructor keys for the worksheet.

The purpose of this exercise is to familiarize and give practice with identifying major classes of reaction (oxidative addition, etc.) in an organometallic catalytic cycle. After this exercise, students should be able to do the same for a new catalytic cycle provided by the instructor on a homework set or exam.

Alkyne Semihydrogenation with Niobium(II) Imido Complexes: Exploring An Unconventional Hydrogenation Mechanism

Submitted by Matt Whited / Carleton College on Thu, 08/09/2012 - 11:30
Description

This is a literature discussion based on an interesting Bergman/Arnold paper utilizing d2 niobium imido complexes for the semihydrogenation of arylalkynes to Z-alkenes.  The mechanism is quite unusual, and I found it to be an interesting paper to discuss after we had talked about the classical hydrogenation mechanisms (typically observed for late transition metals).  The students should come into the discussion understanding fundamental reaction mechanisms (including σ-bond metathesis), and it's helpful if they are somewhat familiar with mono- and dihydride mech

Exploration of Nitrosyl Complexes

Submitted by Brad Kraft / St. John Fisher College on Mon, 07/30/2012 - 15:33
Description

This in-class activity and the related problem set allows students to discover the linear and bent bonding modes of NO to metals based on VSEPR theory through guided inquiry.  Two examples follow which illustrate how the electrons are counted in NO complexes depending on the coordination mode/formal charge of NO. Students must have had prior practice in counting electrons of complexes to complete the problems.   

Catalysis: Copper-Mediated Cross Coupling Reactions

Submitted by Sibrina Collins / College of Arts and Sciences at Lawrence Technological University on Thu, 07/19/2012 - 14:29
Description

This in-class activity introduces students to copper-mediated cross coupling reactions. In the literature, many cross coupling reactions are often discussed using palladium as a catalyst, not copper. In my laboratory, we are synthesizing 7-azaindole-based ligands for the development of potential anti-tumor platinum(II) complexes. In addition, I use one of my own publications to demonstrate an application of this synthetic strategy. The students calculate the actual turnover number (TON) and turnover frequency (TOF) for the copper catalyst.

Ir-based Catalysis of Alkyl Halides: Scope, Mechanism, and Unexpected Reactivity Patterns

Submitted by Matt Hartings / American University on Thu, 07/19/2012 - 10:34
Description

This literature review covers a paper by the Brookhart group in which they describe a very interesting catalytic route for reducing alkyl halides. The paper describes the catalytic mechanism in great detail and shows an unexpected trend in relative reactivities (Br > Cl > I and primary > secondary). One of the primary benefits for using this paper is that it can enable your students to rationalize a mechanism consistent with many different data sets.

Literature Discussion on “Mechanisms for the Activation of Carbon Monoxide via Oxorhenium Complexes.”

Submitted by Nicole Crowder / University of Mary Washington on Thu, 07/19/2012 - 09:54
Description

This is intended as a guided reading assignment for the JACS Communication, “Mechanism for the Activation of Carbon Monoxide via Oxorhenium Complexes” by Smeltz, Boyle, and Ison; J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2011, 133, 13288-13291. This article will expose students to newly published research and novel reaction mechanisms. It will require students to apply their knowledge of electron counting and organometallic mechanisms.

Deciphering Mechanisms of Organometallic Reactions

Submitted by Nicole Crowder / University of Mary Washington on Thu, 07/19/2012 - 09:42
Description

A detailed in-class analysis of the paper “Mechanism for the Activation of Carbon Monoxide via Oxorhenium Complexes” by Smeltz, Boyle, and Ison; J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2011, 133, 13288-13291.  Students will apply their knowledge of organometallic chemistry concepts to the mechanistic scheme in the paper.

C(sp3)-F Activation through an Initial C(sp3)-H Activation Mechanism

Submitted by John Lee / University of Tennessee Chattanooga on Wed, 07/18/2012 - 16:35
Description

This paper is from a Science article from Alan Goldman’s group at Rutgers University. It was one of the literature articles that was assigned during the IONiC VIPEr Workshop in July 2012.  In conjunction with reading the article, workshop participants attended a seminar presented by Alan Goldman on this work.

Oxidative Suzuki-Type C-H Functionalization (Learning to Read a Detailed Organic Paper)

Submitted by Matt Whited / Carleton College on Tue, 07/17/2012 - 21:09
Description

This is a literature excercise I used in my upper-level organometallic course to guide students through some of the important points of a detailed organic/organometallic paper.  I have found that the first hurdles in some of these papers involve getting students to the point where they can understand (a) what specific reaction is being performed, and (b) what the role of each reagent is.  This set of questions includes a mix of material, including some things that are specifically stated in the article and some that are implied or referenced elsewhere.  I found that excercises like this one

Writing assignment series related to topics discussed in organometallic chemistry - Assignment 2 Literature Highlights

Submitted by Abby O'Connor / The College of New Jersey on Mon, 07/16/2012 - 15:15
Description

Searching and reading the literature is an important tool in teaching organometallic chemistry. This overall project focuses on the improving students' writing skills and to begin to think critically about articles in the literature through a series of different writing assignments. This project is used in a semester long course on organometallics and reaction mechanisms. The first assignment (this LO) is a summary, the second is related to the NSF highlight, and the third is a literature critique.

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