Research Initiation Award: Polymerization in Metalloporphyrin Metal Organic Frameworks

Research Initiation Awards provide support for junior and mid-career faculty at Historically Black Colleges and Universities who are building new research programs or redirecting and rebuilding existing research programs. It is expected that the award helps to further the faculty member's research capability and effectiveness, improve research and teaching at the home institution, and involves undergraduate students in research experiences.

The award to Huston-Tillotson University proposes a new synthetic scheme using metal compounds. The synthesis and characterization of these compounds will provide an opportunity for undergraduate students to obtain basic training in chemical synthesis, characterization, and polymerization.

The goal of the proposed study is to develop a recyclable metalloporphyrin MOFs (metal-organic frameworks) catalyst by means of a synthesis flow utilizing inexpensive starting materials for controlled selective polymerization. The work has the potential to yield a deeper understanding about the coordination environment of porphyrin with different metal centers.

The MOFs formation as a function of groups on the porphyrin and polymerization inside the MOFs will be studied. The kinetics and mechanism will be compared with those in homogenous polymerization. The work has the potential to discover ideal conditions for polymerization and MOFs recovery.

The work could uncover a heterogenous system of MOFs catalyst of multiple-site polymerization which would be an improvement over traditional homogenous catalysts of single-site polymerization. The proposed metalloporphyrin MOFs could have the benefits of increased catalyst stability and recyclability in contrast to traditional homogeneous ones. Additional advances could come from utilizing the high internal surface area of MOFs, enabling advances in the efficiency of catalytic polymerization.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.