Dalton Transactions Blog

This year’s Dalton Transactions International Symposium was held in November in Singapore and Shanghai, with the theme of organometallic chemistry and catalysis.

Day One of the Symposium was held in a hot and humid Singapore, at the A* Star Institute of Materials Research and Engineering (IMRE), where local host Professor TS Andy Hor welcomed both local and overseas speakers.  After an opening welcome by Andy and Editor Jamie Humphrey, Professor Pak-Hing Leung, from the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in the west of Singapore began the scientific talks, with his presentation entitled ‘Palladacycle-catalysed asymmetric hydrophosphination: direct and efficient synthesis of functionalised chiral tertiary phosphines’. After the morning coffee break, served Singapore style, Professor Philip Mountford (University of Oxford, UK, and Dalton Transactions Editorial Board Chair) gave a talk about ‘New terminal titanium hydrazido complexes: exploring the chemistry of the Ti=N-NR2 functional group’ and Professor JJ Vittal, from the National University of Singapore (NUS), took us up to lunch by describing his research on the ‘Design and reactivity of coordination polymers’.

Following lunch, Professor Aaron Sadow (Iowa State University) began the afternoon session, sporting his new Singapore haircut which he had the day before, presenting his talk on ‘Main group compounds supported by oxazolinylborate ligands in catalysis’. Aaron was followed by Professor Kuo-Wei Huang (King Abdullah University of Science & Technology), speaking about ‘A new class of PN3-pincer ligands for metal-ligand cooperative catalysis’. The final session of the day included a presentation by Professor Jean-Francois Carpentier ( University of Rennes), on ‘Discrete complexes of alkaline- and rare-earth elements: useful catalysts for cyclic esters polymerisations and hydroelementation reactions’ and Professor Han Vinh Huynh (NUS), speaking about ‘Non-classical NHC ligands and a new electronic parameter for the  determination of ligand donor strengths’.

After the formal end of the Symposium, the speakers were given a tour of the facilities at IMRE, including a tour of the clean room (with a very strict dress code…). Day One of the Symposium was a great success, with a series of excellent scientific talks and many opportunities for those attending the Symposium to meet and discuss science with the speakers.

The next day the travelling speakers flew to Shanghai, where even though the weather was rather chilly, they received the warmest of welcomes, from local host Professor Guo-Xin Jin and other friends, beginning with a welcome dinner at the Jin Mao Tower in the Pudong district of Shanghai.

Day Two of the Symposium saw the return to the exact same venue where we had organised the very first Dalton Transactions International Symposium in 2009, the Fuxian Hotel at Fudan University. Following the same pattern of Day One of the Symposium, local host Professor Guo-Xin Jin welcomed those in attendance and opened the scientific sessions.

Professor Kuiling Ding (Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry) began with a presentation on ‘Chiral catalyst evolution: rational design and serendipity’, and was joined by Professors Mountford, Sadow and Carpentier, and local speakers Professor Jie-Sheng Chen (Shanghai Jiao Tong University, ‘Electron transfer and its effects in porous solid’), Professor Aiwen Lei (Wuhan University, ‘Oxidative coupling: chemistry between two “nucleophiles” ‘) and Professor Tao Tu (Fudan University, ‘Synthesis, aggregation and applications of pincer type organometallics’). The day concluded with some closing remarks by Jamie Humphrey and dinner in the Fuxian Hotel.

The 4th Dalton Transactions International Symposium brought together world class organometallic chemists, allowing old friends to be reunited and new friendships to be made. It was great to see so many discussions during the breaks, and especially to see local students discussing chemistry with the speakers.

Very many thanks are due to the local hosts, Professors Andy Hor in Singapore and Guo-Xin Jin in Shanghai, for their tireless efforts to ensure a successful Symposium, to the co-sponsoring host organisations, IMRE and the Singapore National Institute of Chemistry (SNIC) and Fudan University, for their generous financial support, and to all 11 speakers!

Read a selection of recent Dalton Transactions articles by the Symposium speakers by following the links below:

Site selectivity and reversibility in the reactions of titanium hydrazides with Si–H, Si–X, C–X and H⁺ reagents: Ti Nα 1,2-silane addition, Nβ alkylation, Nα protonation and σ-bond metathesis
Pei Jen Tiong, Ainara Nova, Andrew D. Schwarz, Jonathan D. Selby, Eric Clot and Philip Mountford
Dalton Trans., 2012,41, 2277-2288
DOI: 10.1039/C2DT12359B

Unusual structural motif in a zwitterionic Fe(II) complex of a tetradentate phosphine
Barun Jana, Megan Hovey, Arkady Ellern, Oleg Pestovsky, Aaron D. Sadow and Andreja Bakac
Dalton Trans., 2012,41, 12781-12785
DOI: 10.1039/C2DT31437A

Allyl strontium compounds: synthesis, molecular structure and properties
Phillip Jochmann, Julien P. Davin, Stefanie Maslek, Thomas P. Spaniol, Yann Sarazin, Jean-Francois Carpentier and Jun Okuda
Dalton Trans., 2012,41, 9176-9181
DOI: 10.1039/C2DT30743J

One-step entry to olefin-tethered N,S-heterocyclic carbene complexes of ruthenium with mixed ligands
Nini Ding, Wenhua Zhang and T. S. Andy Hor
Dalton Trans., 2012,41, 5988-5994
DOI: 10.1039/C2DT12354A

Palladium(IV) chemistry supported by pincer type ligands
Heng Zhang and Aiwen Lei
Dalton Trans., 2011,40, 8745-8754
DOI: 10.1039/C1DT10373C

A precursor route to single-crystalline WO3 nanoplates with an uneven surface and enhanced sensing properties
Xiao-Xin Zou, Guo-Dong Li, Pei-Pei Wang, Juan Su, Jun Zhao, Li-Jing Zhou, Yu-Ning Wang and Jie-Sheng Chen
Dalton Trans., 2012,41, 9773-9780
DOI: 10.1039/C2DT30748K

Chiral cyclopalladated complex promoted asymmetric synthesis of diester-substituted P,N-ligands via stepwise hydrophosphination and hydroamination reactions
Ke Chen, Sumod A. Pullarkat, Mengtao Ma, Yongxin Li and Pak-Hing Leung
Dalton Trans., 2012,41, 5391-5400
DOI: 10.1039/C2DT12379G

Correlation of spectroscopically determined ligand donor strength and nucleophilicity of substituted pyrazoles
Jan Christopher Bernhammer and Han Vinh Huynh
Dalton Trans., 2012,41, 8600-8608
DOI: 10.1039/C2DT30526G

Bottom-up synthesis of coordination polymers based on carborane backbones and Cu₂(CO₂)₄ paddle-wheel: ligand metathesis with metallotecons
Sheng-Li Huang, Lin-Hong Weng and Guo-Xin Jin
Dalton Trans., 2012,41, 11657-11662
DOI: 10.1039/C2DT30708A

About 2000 chemists arrived in Calgary to share research, catch up with old acquaintances and make new friends.  This was my third CSC meeting, and the conference is a highlight of my year. I therefore was not expecting the question I was asked at immigration; ‘Why would you travel all the way to Calgary from the UK to attend a conference?’ ‘He’s clearly not been to a CSC meeting’, I thought to myself as I collected my passport back and entered Canada, looking forward to my next few days at the conference.

Calgary Tower

The CSC meeting covers all branches of chemistry however, I attended mainly for the inorganic sessions.  The meeting programme provided an excellent range of inorganic themes, including hydrogen activation, physical methods for coordination chemistry, main group chemistry, solar fuels, metals in biology, ligand design, inorganic molecular modelling, optical and electronic materials, solid state chemistry, and catalysis. Reflecting the impact that inorganic chemistry has on many different areas of chemical research, 9 of these symposia were arranged jointly with other Canadian Society for Chemistry divisions. Two chemists were honoured at CSC2012 by Symposia in their name: Barry Lever and Howard Alper.

Keeping up with the conference was helped by a number of people using Twitter to spread the excitement of the event (#CSC2012 if you want to take a look on Twitter), and Twitter was used to good effect. Anyone not able to attend could get the flavour of the meeting from the tweets, and those at the meeting could make sure they did not miss out on anything that had just been announced (free frisbees available in the Exhibition!). The organisers also posted photos from the conference on Flickr.

Don’t miss these two inorganic conferences in Canada in July

6th International Symposium on Bioorganometallic Chemistry

Challenges in Inorganic and Materials Chemistry (ISACS8)

To get a flavour of CSC meeting, take a look at these recent articles from some of the delegates at the conference.

Cycloruthenated sensitizers: improving the dye-sensitized solar cell with classical inorganic chemistry principles
Kiyoshi C. D. Robson, Paolo G. Bomben and Curtis P. Berlinguette
Dalton Trans., 2012, Advance Article
DOI=10.1039/C2DT30825H

Synthesis and reactivity of 2-azametallacyclobutanes
Alexander Dauth and Jennifer A. Love
Dalton Trans., 2012, Advance Article
DOI=10.1039/C2DT30639E

Non-innocent ligand behaviour of a bimetallic Cu complex employing a bridging catecholate
Tim J. Dunn, Linus Chiang, Caterina F. Ramogida, Michael I. Webb, Didier Savard, Miyuki Sakaguchi, Takashi Ogura, Yuichi Shimazaki and Tim Storr
Dalton Trans., 2012, Advance Article
DOI=10.1039/C2DT30444A

Rigid NON- and NSN-ligand complexes of tetravalent and trivalent uranium: comparison of U–OAr2 and U–SAr2 bonding
Balamurugan Vidjayacoumar, Sougandi Ilango, Matthew J. Ray, Terry Chu, Kristopher B. Kolpin, Nicholas R. Andreychuk, Carlos A. Cruz, David J. H. Emslie, Hilary A. Jenkins and James F. Britten
Dalton Trans., 2012, Advance Article
DOI=10.1039/C2DT30247K

Heterobimetallic lanthanide–gold coordination polymers: structure and emissive properties of isomorphous [nBu4N]2[Ln(NO3)4Au(CN)2] 1-D chains
Ryan J. Roberts, Xiaobo Li, Tye F. Lacey, Zhong Pan, Howard H. Patterson and Daniel B. Leznoff
Dalton Trans., 2012,41, 6992-6997
DOI=10.1039/C2DT30156C

Ni(II), Pd(II) and Pt(II) complexes of PNP and PSP tridentate amino–phosphine ligands
Michael J. Sgro and Douglas W. Stephan
Dalton Trans., 2012,41, 6791-6802
DOI=10.1039/C2DT30373F

Were you at the CSC meeting? Share your stories of the conference with us in the comments below.

This week I attended the 15th International Conference on Biological Inorganic Chemistry (ICBIC), organised under the auspices of the Society of Biological Inorganic Chemistry.

This was my fourth ICBIC, and as I have been before at previous meetings, I was very impressed with both the quality of the science presented, and the breadth of science covered. There were too many session headings to list here (the full programme can be found on the conference website), but to give an idea of the breadth of biological inorganic chemistry presented, the different sessions covered therapeutics (treatments for malaria, cancer and Alzheimer’s); enzymes (nitrogenase, oxygenase, peroxidase); trafficking (Cu, Ni, Fe); imaging; sensing; bioorganometallic chemistry; and metallomics – with all this great chemistry to cover, the conference spanned 6 days. Sadly, I was only able to attend the first half of the conference.

I knew to expect a warm welcome for delegates at this conference: the biological inorganic chemistry community is very friendly and welcoming. However, we were also blessed to be welcomed by perfect weather in the beautiful city of Vancouver. We could not have wished for a better location for the meeting –  I had heard some very good things about Vancouver, but the reality surpassed the imagination!

With about 700 delegates, ICBIC15 was busy enough to have a buzz about it, but not too busy to feel anonymous (and to ensure everyone could have one of the great cakes served during the morning coffee break – I noticed that I am not the only one with a weakness for cinnamon buns).

The organisers had made a conscious decision to open up the presentations, by having a larger number of contributed talks than there has been in recent ICBICs. This seemed to have worked very well, as it helped to encourage a good number of talks by early career members of the community. While it is always a pleasure to listen to more established chemists, there is something particularly special about hearing from those who are just starting to build their scientific presence and reputation.

The first ICBIC was held 35 years ago, and to celebrate, a number of Jade Anniversary lectures were given by Harry Gray, Ed Solomon, Ken Raymond, Jan Reedijk and David Garner, to name but a few. The Jade speakers had the significant challenge of covering 35 years of chemistry in 20-30 minutes, but they were all up to the challenge!

The organising committee, in particular Chris Orvig, are to be congratulated for selecting an exciting programme of scientific talks and social events for us all  to enjoy, and Sheri and Alison for ensuring all worked well behind the scenes for the week. Everything ran smoothly and seemingly effortlessly, a sure sign of excellent organisation.

You know when you have attended a good conference when you feel reluctant to leave and say goodbye, to the friends who you saw  again and to those you met for the first time. 2013 seems too long to wait for the next ICBIC… ICBIC16 will be held 14-19 July 2013 in Grenoble, France.

Where you also at ICBIC15? What was your favourite part of the meeting? Tell us about your own ICBIC experience by posting a comment below…..