68 Name: Rouse, Emily Major: Chemistry Home Institution (Other than MSU): Lebanon Valley College Faculty Advisor Name, Affiliation: Sean L. Stokes, Chemistry; Joseph P. Emerson, Chemistry Project Category: Physical Sciences and Engineering Co-Author(s): Mitu Sharma, Alison K. Duckworth REU/Research Program: NSF-INFEWS Metal N-Heterocyclic Carbene Complexes as Catalyst for Ketone Reduction Reactions N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) are strong σ-donating ligands that coordinate to a range of metal ions, which can serve as powerful catalysts for modern organic transformations. NHCs offer some benefit over other common organometallic ligands like the phosphines, which typically show limited air and moisture stability. Nickel(II) complexes of both imidazole and benzimidazole based NHCs have been synthesized and characterized, and show moderate reactivity toward acetophenone to generate 1-phenylethanol. Other first-row transition metal ions (including Mn2+, Fe2+, Co2+, Cu2+, and Zn2+) have also been explored, toward the efficient reduction of ketone in sustainable solvents. This Lewis acid catalyzed conversion of ketones to alcohols provides opportunities for further method development that can be used in modern synthetic processes. Characterization of the NHC complexes were done by UV-vis, X-ray crystallography, and HR-MS and the reaction products were analyzed by GC-MS, thin layer chromatography, and LC-MS.
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