Grant: Canada Research Chairs

Catalysis accelerates chemical reactions, reduces energy cost, and minimizes pollution. Even if catalysis is at the core of green chemistry, catalysts are often made from polluting, expensive and toxic metals. This research program aims at designing and developing cheap and environmentally benign metal-free catalysts based on Lewis acid/Lewis base cooperativity for industrially relevant applications. Some of the desired transformations include the reduction of carbon dioxide into energy vectors, the construction of chemical building blocks for the pharmaceutical and organic electronic industries through C-H bond activation, and the generation of valuable chemicals from cheap natural resources.