Biomimetic iron complexes for the oxidation of C-H bonds in hydrocarbons

With the rapid growth in transportation and industry, petroleum and other types of fossil fuels (coal, heavy oil) are heavily used for energy production. The consumption of these types of energy resources pose a serious environmental concern because of the production of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) which are the primary reasons for climate change. This makes the development of cheaper and cleaner energy more important in modern society. Conversion of methane into liquid fuel such as methanol has become a promising goal for future petrochemical derivatives and decreasing petroleum dependence. Methane is the primary component of natural gas which is highly abundant on earth. Methane is used as a raw material to produce methanol which is further used as fuel to generate electricity. However, the conversion of methane into methanol is carried out at high temperature and pressure and this process is energy consuming. This makes methane oxidation catalysts high in demand. In recent decades, transition metal complexes have proven to be efficient and powerful catalysts for various oxidative transformations. Specifically, mononuclear and di-nuclear metal complexes now are widely applied as catalysts for the oxidation of organic substrates and water. Transition metals such as Mn, Fe, Co, Ni and Cu have been recognized as cheap, environmentally friendly and effective catalysts for C-H activation. Specifically, iron is the most attractive metal because it’s very inexpensive (most earth-abundant transition metal), displays high oxidation states (required in catalysis), and is relatively non-toxic. In this research, we will design and develop routes for synthesizing iron complexes that can serve as cheap and efficient catalysts for methane oxidation (or C-H activation). This is the foundation for future research aiming at converting inert hydrocarbons into useful petrochemical derivatives.