Iridium dihydroxybipyridine complexes for hydrodeoxygenation
Description

I regularly give an oral exam instead of a written exam in my junior and senior level organometallics seminar course. The course focuses on the primary literature, discussion of advanced topics, and asking questions. A written exam would not evaluate the students' abilities on the important skill development they learned in the class. Besides, I am better able to gauge when a student has no idea about a certain topic, or just needs a little nudge in order for them to demonstrate that they actually understand 95% of it.

Adam Johnson / Harvey Mudd College Thu, 01/04/2024 - 17:50
Synthesis of Ti complexes supported by an ortho-terphenoxide
Description

The Tonks group has helped to revitalize interest in early metal, especially titanium, organometallic chemistry in recent years. Often his group uses Ti complexes for multi-component coupling, increasingly with masked low-valent Ti(II) as an important intermediate. This paper is more fundamental, exploring a ligand based on ortho-terphenoxide since the meta- and para- derivatives were already known. Along the way, they report some interesting NMR and structural information, and finish with some hydroamination catalysis. 

Adam Johnson / Harvey Mudd College Thu, 01/04/2024 - 16:21

Geometric Control of C-C RE from a Pt(IV) Pincer Complex

Submitted by Adam Johnson / Harvey Mudd College on Thu, 01/04/2024 - 15:10
Description

When I saw this paper come out, I thought it would make a great teaching paper. It has synthesis, characterization, reaction mechanisms, computational chemistry and it directly impacts catalysis by a thorough examination of the reductive elimination reaction. What are the factors governing the rate of C-C RE? Can geometry (sterics) control reactivity or is it only based on the hybridization (sp2/sp3) of the carbon atom in question (electronics)?

An Exploration of Molecular Dihydrogen Complexes

Submitted by Adam Johnson / Harvey Mudd College on Mon, 11/27/2023 - 14:41
Description

I wanted my organometallic class to explore the bonding and spectroscopy of the Kubas dihydrogen complex without having to spend the time doing the entire literature discussion (which is really great and I have done it many times in the past) because I wanted to do it in only about 20-30 minutes in a 75 minute class period. Most of the questions come from the Kubas literature discussion, which I shortened. The IR and reduced mass calculations come from an LO I wrote about arene activation by Jones and Feher.

“Five” Slides About: Multiple Bonds

Submitted by Rebecca Eikey / Chestnut Hill College on Thu, 10/26/2023 - 09:15
Description

Here are 10 slides to introduce students to multiple bonds formed between transition metals and between transition metals and ligands. This can be adapted to general chemistry, as long as students have learned Lewis diagrams. This can also be extended to add more information on the nature of the multiple bonds for upper division use in inorganic and physical chemistry. 

The mechanism of Oxidative addition of Pd(0) to Si-H bonds

Submitted by Adam Johnson / Harvey Mudd College on Tue, 10/10/2023 - 18:25
Description

I saw Amanda Cook present this work (and another paper, Organometallics202241, 997) at the Organometallics Gordon Conference in summer 2023 and while I was furiously taking notes, I knew that I wanted to teach this paper. The paper elucidates the mechanism of oxidative addition of tertiary silanes to palladium zero phosphine complexes. 

Chem 165 2023

Submitted by Adam Johnson / Harvey Mudd College on Tue, 10/10/2023 - 17:56

This is a collection of LOs that I used to teach a junior-senior seminar course on organometallics during Fall 2023 at Harvey Mudd College. There were a total of 11 students in the course. Most of the students had taken one semester of both organic and physical chemistry, and about half had taken inorganic (none from me, though, as I was on sabbatical). I used the Stanley textbook hosted on this site (linked below).

Stable Borepinium and Borafluorenium Heterocycles: A Reversible Thermochromic “Switch” Based on Boron–Oxygen Interactions by Robert J. Gilliard Jr.
Description

This literature discussion on the Hot Paper communication in Chemistry, A European Journal; highlights the first examples of borepinium and borfluorenium cations whose optical properties can be tuned and also the very first reported example of thermochromism in these cationic species. R. J. Gilliard, Chem. Eur. J. 2019, 25, 12512. https://doi.org/10.1002/chem.201903348

Niharika K Botcha / Carnegie Mellon University Fri, 06/30/2023 - 10:27

Inorganic Chemistry

Submitted by Daniel Ashley / Spelman College on Thu, 06/22/2023 - 16:48
Description

Rigorous treatment of the chemistry of inorganic compounds, including structure, properties, and reactions, and their interpretation in terms of quantum chemistry, and solid state chemistry; analysis with modern instrumentation.

Inorganic Chemistry

Submitted by Jaime Murphy / Harding University on Mon, 06/12/2023 - 11:04
Description

CHEM 4310 is an in-depth review of modern inorganic chemistry. Topics will include symmetry, acids and bases, reduction-oxidation reactions, periodic trends, coordination chemistry, organometallic chemistry, bioinorganic chemistry, and material chemistry. The course will meet for three hours of lecture and three hours of laboratory per week.