Robert H. Crabtree

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Robert Crabtree
Corday-Morgan Prize (1982)
Centenary Prize (2013)
Scientific career
FieldsOrganometallic chemistry
InstitutionsYale University
Institut de Chimie des Substances Naturelles
ThesisTransition Metal Dinitrogen Complexes Adduct Formation and Base Character (1973)
Doctoral advisorJoseph Chatt
Other academic advisorsMalcolm Green
Hugh Felkin[1]
Websitechem.yale.edu/people/robert-crabtree

Robert Howard Crabtree FRS[2] (born 17 April 1948) is a British-American chemist. He is serving as Conkey P. Whitehead Professor Emeritus of Chemistry at Yale University in the United States. He is a naturalized citizen of the United States.[3] Crabtree is particularly known for his work on "Crabtree's catalyst" for hydrogenations, and his textbook on organometallic chemistry.[4]

Education

Robert Howard Crabtree studied at Brighton College (1959–1966), and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Oxford where he was a student at New College, Oxford in 1970, studying under Malcolm Green. He received his PhD from the University of Sussex in 1973, supervised by Joseph Chatt.[5]

Career

After his PhD, he was a postdoctoral researcher with Hugh Felkin at the Institut de Chimie des Substances Naturelles at Gif-sur-Yvette, near Paris. He was a postdoctoral fellow (1973–1975) and then attaché de recherche (1975–1977). At the end of that time he was chargé de recherche. In 1977 Crabtree took an assistant professorship in Inorganic Chemistry at Yale University. He served as associate professor from 1982 to 1985, and as full professor from 1985 to 2021.[6] In retirement, he now serves as an emeritus professor of chemistry.[7]

Editorial positions and published works

  • The Organometallic Chemistry of the Transition Metals (7 editions) (
    ISBN 978-1119465881
    )
  • Inorganic Chemistry Section (editor) Encyclopedia of Inorganic Chemistry (1992–1994)
  • Associate Editor of New Journal of Chemistry (1998–2003)
  • Editor-in-chief of Comprehensive Organometallic Chemistry III (2004–present)
  • Editor-in-chief of Encyclopedia of Inorganic Chemistry (2004–present)
  • Board of regional editors of Science (2006–present)
  • Chemistry of the Transition Metals (2009)
  • Handbook of Green Chemistry – Green Catalysis (2009) (co-author)

Awards and honours

Research

Hydrogenation

Robert Crabtree is renowned for his influential work on

catalyst is evident from the identification of a catalyst-substrate complex involving norbornene-2-ol.[11][12]

Selective Hydrogenation of terpinen-4-ol utilizing Crabtree's Catalyst.
Stoichiometric alkane dehydrogenation of cyclooctane with tert-butylethylene as a hydrogen acceptor.

During his early research, Crabtree also focused on

tenure
award and academic success

A novel form of Hydrogen Bonding

Unconventional hydrogen bonding in transition metal hydrides complexes.

Another part of Crabtree's research centers on a novel form of

catalysts
with tailored properties.

Introduction of Mesoionic Carbenes (MICs)

C4 coordinated imidazolylidene Iridium complex in transfer hydrogenation catalysis.

Crabtree has made significant contributions to the field of

catalytic cycles. Crabtree has developed novel methods for generating and isolating abnormal carbenes, providing insights into their structures and stability under different conditions. Notably, he introduced the first example of an abnormal carbene complex incorporating an iridium complex with a C4 coordinated imidazolylidene, which found application in transfer hydrogenation catalysis.[16]

Manganese di-μ-oxo Dimers for Oxygen Evolution

Manganese di-μ-oxo dimers involved in O2-evolution as a functional model for photosynthetic water oxidation.

Crabtree's research has made significant advancements in our understanding of O–O bond formation within

nucleophilic attack of OH– on the oxo group. Oxygen-18 isotope labeling experiments have demonstrated that the oxygen atoms in the evolved molecular oxygen originate from water
. This system thus serves as a functional model for photosynthetic water oxidation.

Crabtree has made significant contributions in

C–H bond activation, water oxidation, and hydrogenation
. His approach entails selecting unique projects, conducting early critical experiments, transitioning between problems, developing air-stable catalysts, and educating through his writing.

References

  1. ^ "Crabtree Gives Prestigious Franco-American Chemistry Prize Lecture | Department of Chemistry".
  2. ^ a b "Robert Crabtree". royalsociety.org.
  3. ^ Yale Faculty webpage[permanent dead link]. Retrieved 21 September 2014
  4. ^ Crabtree Lab Homepage, ursula.chem.yale.edu. Retrieved 21 September 2014.
  5. EThOS uk.bl.ethos.452454
    .
  6. S2CID 234003600
    .
  7. ^ "Robert Crabtree | Department of Chemistry". chem.yale.edu. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  8. ^ http://ursula.chem.yale.edu/~crabtree/CV_May_08.pdf[permanent dead link] Yale Faculty webpage
  9. ^ Chemical & Engineering News, 23 February 2009, "2009 ACS National Award Winners", p. 68
  10. ISSN 0022-4936
    .
  11. ISSN 0276-7333
    .
  12. ISSN 0022-3263
    .
  13. ISSN 0002-7863
    .
  14. S2CID 93959077
    .
  15. ISSN 0002-7863
    .
  16. PMID 12240147
    .
  17. PMID 10066173
    .
  18. PMID 11456544
    .

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