Group 4 organometallics
Ti(IV), Zr(IV) and Hf complexes with half-salen, salen, salan and salphen scaffolds, imino-phenoxides, and [NNO], [OO] and [NO] donor ligands.
Catalysis
Catalysis, from the ligand outwards.
Homogeneous catalysis, organometallic pre-catalysts and chemical process development — the common thread running through every project in the group.
The approach
A catalyst is a designed environment around a metal center. Change the ancillary ligand and you change the rate, the selectivity and the architecture of everything the catalyst makes. The group's work is largely an exercise in that relationship — built on organometallic compounds of main-group and transition metals, and on simple metal salts where they will do the job.
Catalytic systems
Main-group compounds
Zn(II), Al(III) and Mg(II) systems, including chiral proline-derived complexes.
Metal-free catalysis
phosphorus(V) compounds and Lewis-pair catalysts giving fully alternating polyesters and hyperbranched polyglycerols.
Olefin polymerization
new non-metallocene pre-catalysts, and organometallic cocatalysts developed during work with the Dow Chemical Company.
Simple metal salts
silver- and iron-mediated catalytic transformations of organic molecules.
Beyond polymers
The same catalytic thinking has been applied to process development for active pharmaceutical ingredients, to dye degradation and microbial remediation for water treatment, and to CO₂ hydrogenation.
Selected publications
Catalysis in our published work.
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124
Ruthenium based organometallic catalysts for CO₂ hydrogenation: a decade update
Inorg. Chim.Acta 2026, 597, 123154.
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123
Chiral Proline-derived Zn(II) Complexes as Catalysts for Ring-Opening Polymerization and Ring-Opening Copolymerization Reactions
Polym. Chem. 2026, 17, 758-769.
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122
Efficient and Controlled Ring-Opening Copolymerization of Cyclohexene Oxide with Cyclic Anhydrides Catalyzed by Proline-based Chiral Alkyl Al(III) Compounds
Faraday Discuss, 2026, 262, 191–211.
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121
Salen Derivatives of Zr(IV) as Efficient Catalysts for the Ring-Opening Copolymerization of Epoxides with Anhydrides
Eur. J. Inorg Chem. 2026, 0, e202500510.
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120
Isolation and characterization of carbene supported air stable Co(II)-radical complexes with bileptic redox non-innocent ligands: stability, bonding, ring-opening copolymerization studies and photo-catalytic ring cyclization activity
Dalton Trans. 2025, 54, 11182–11192.
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119
Highly Isoselective Polymerization of rac‐Lactide by Zinc Complexes of Sequential Tetradentate {ONNN}‐Ligands
ChemSusChem, 2025, e202500402.
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118
Mononuclear and dinuclear tetravalent zirconium compounds as catalysts for the synthesis of aliphatic polyesters and aliphatic polycarbonates
Polymer 2025, 329, 128496.
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117
An understanding of PLA synthesis using metal catalysts
Polymers for Advanced Technology, Springer Proceedings in Materials 1, 2024. doi:10.1007/978-981-97-7209-4_14
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116
Mononuclear phenoxy-imine Mg(II) compounds as catalysts for the ring-opening copolymerization of epoxides with CO₂
Mater. Today Chem. 2024, 41, 102330.
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115
Phenoxy-imine supported hexacoordinate tetravalent titanium compounds: Synthesis, characterization and catalytic applications for ROP and ROCOP reactions
Eur. Polym. J. 2024, 216, 113281.
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113
Group 13 metal compounds as catalyst for the homopolymerization of epoxides
J. Polym. Res. 2024, 31, 14-21.
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111
Phenoxy-imine based Mononuclear Zn(II) Compounds: Applications as Polymerization Catalysts
Adv. Mater. Lett. 2023, 23041733-23041737.
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110
Bimetallic Al(III) compounds as catalysts for the synthesis of biodegradable polyesters and polycarbonates
Eur. J. Org. Chem. 2023, 26, e202300371.
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108
Ring-opening copolymerization of CO₂ with epoxides catalyzed by binary catalysts containing half salen aluminum compounds and quaternary phosphonium salt
Mol. Catal. 2023, 540, 113053-113066.
Catalysis for your process?
The group has a track record in industrial process development alongside fundamental catalysis.