idw – Informationsdienst Wissenschaft
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Scientists at the University of Bremen have successfully isolated a nitrene for the first time, which was previously considered impossible to isolate. The discovery was published in the renowned "Science" journal.
"Our finding is a great success for foundation research. Chemistry textbooks will have to be rewritten," states Professor Jens Beckmann, head of the research team. "We have shown that it is possible to control these highly reactive compounds in the laboratory. This will not only improve our understanding of chemistry, but also holds potential for developing new innovative catalyst systems.”
Life Span Originally in Nanosecond Range
The isolation of nitrenes was previously impossible due to the fact that these compounds react very quickly with other substances and normally only remain stable for tiny fractions of a second. The breakthrough was achieved by the scientists building a kind of protective shield around the reactive nitrogen atom, which seals it off from other substances in the environment. "Figuratively speaking, we have built two walls around the reactive nitrogen atom that serve to shield it," explains Professor Beckmann. Chemists call this protective mechanism kinetic stabilization.
To determine the exact structure of the isolated nitrene, the researchers used a special method called X-ray structure analysis. This revealed that the nitrogen atom in this case is only connected to a single carbon atom, whereas nitrogen normally forms three bonds. "The X-ray structure analysis gave us amazing insights," says Beckmann. "The nitrogen atom in our nitrene is only bonded to a single carbon atom, which is extremely unusual and leads to a so-called electronic triplet ground state. This unique structure gives the nitrene special magnetic properties known as paramagnetism."
Discovery Could Lead to New Developments in Catalyst Research
The significance of this discovery goes far beyond foundation research. Stable nitrenes could be used as novel ligands in homogeneous catalysts, for example in the chemical industry, in order to make chemical reactions more efficient and save energy.
Beckmann emphasizes that interdisciplinary research was the key to success. "Although the origins lie in chemistry, it was only through collaboration with the geo- and material sciences that we were able to understand the magnetic properties and ultimately make this revolutionary discovery." In addition to Professor Beckmann, the authors of the study are: Marvin Janssen, Thomas Frederichs, Marian Olaru, Enno Lork, and Emanuel Hupf.
Prof. Dr. Jens Beckmann, University of Bremen, Faculty 02: Biology / Chemistry, Phone: +49 421 218-63160, Email: j.beckmann@uni-bremen.de
https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adp4963
(From the left) Emanuel Hupf, Jens Beckmann, and Marvin Janssen in the chemistry laboratory at the U ...
Annemarie Popp
Universität Bremen
(From the left) Emanuel Hupf, Marvin Janssen, and Jens Beckmann
Annemarie Popp
Universität Bremen
Criteria of this press release:
Journalists
Biology, Chemistry, Geosciences
transregional, national
Research results
English
(From the left) Emanuel Hupf, Jens Beckmann, and Marvin Janssen in the chemistry laboratory at the U ...
Annemarie Popp
Universität Bremen
(From the left) Emanuel Hupf, Marvin Janssen, and Jens Beckmann
Annemarie Popp
Universität Bremen
You can combine search terms with and, or and/or not, e.g. Philo not logy.
You can use brackets to separate combinations from each other, e.g. (Philo not logy) or (Psycho and logy).
Coherent groups of words will be located as complete phrases if you put them into quotation marks, e.g. “Federal Republic of Germany”.
You can also use the advanced search without entering search terms. It will then follow the criteria you have selected (e.g. country or subject area).
If you have not selected any criteria in a given category, the entire category will be searched (e.g. all subject areas or all countries).
