Presenter(s): Maribelle Stanley − Pre-chemical Engineering
Faculty Mentor(s): David Tyler
Poster 18
Research Area: Chemistry
Funding: National Science Foundation grant CHE-1503550, UO Summit scholarship
Many drugs are produced by important chemical reactions which form molecules with carbon-carbon or carbon-nitrogen bonds. However, the variety of drugs that can be produced using these reactions is limited by whether a desired molecule is capable of being reacted. To make unreactive molecules react, a catalyst can be used. One common type of catalyst contains a palladium atom, which can interact with other molecules in order to form a catalytic molecule. The catalytic function of these molecules depends on how well the palladium can bring reactants together. The main goal of this research project has been to synthesize a suitable catalyst for these important reactions. Under Dr. David Tyler, and as a continuation of research conducted by Dr. Alex Kendall, novel molecules, called phosphines, have been designed, synthesized, and tested for catalytic behavior. Designing these phosphines required research into previously synthesized molecules published by other groups, and the synthesis of these molecules involved using “air-free” chemistry techniques to protect the sensitive reactants from oxygen. Testing for the presence of these molecules in reaction material was done by analyzing the structure of molecules, with two primary techniques: nuclear magnetic spectroscopy and gas-chromatography mass-spectroscopy. One molecule, called “S-Phos”, was successfully synthesized, and has been found to be catalytic; subsequent molecules are in the process of testing and synthesis. Developing new catalytic molecules can open the door to new varieties of drugs, providing better therapies to help people around the world.