Chemistry at the Beginning of the Third Millennium: Molecular Design, Supramolecules, Nanotechnology and Beyond Free

Chemistry at the Beginning of the Third Millennium: Molecular Design, Supramolecules, Nanotechnology and Beyond

L. Fabbrizzi and A. Poggi (Eds)Springer-Verlag2000343 pp.ISBN 3-540-67460-8£86.00 (hardcover)

Keyword: Chemistry

This book consists of the proceedings of the German-Italian meeting of the Coimbra Group Universities, held at Pavia, Italy, 7-10 October 1999. The 15 chapters describe how chemical research may develop in the next decade. Topics covered include materials science, superconductors, supramolecular chemistry,bioinorganic chemistry, fullerenes, liquid crystals and photoinduced electro transfer. The material is well presented and contains minimal amounts of jargon,therefore making it suitable for a wider range of chemists and chemical engineers.

Chapters 1 and 2 present a "Bottom-up approach to nanotechnology:molecular-level devices", and "From theory and organometallic mode chemistry to catalysis: a new class of extremely efficient, single site homogeneous ruthenium ROUP catalysts" respectively. "Enforced co-ordination geometries – preorganization, catalysis and beyond","Supramolecular functions of designed transition metal ion complexes"and "Photoinduced electron transfer: perspectives in organic synthesis"are addressed in the following three chapters.

Chapters 6 to 8 discuss advances in biochemistry, namely: "`Bioinspired'metal complexes of macrocyclic [N₄^2–] and open chain[N₂O₂^2–] Schiff base ligands – a link between porphyrins and salicylaldimines", "Temperature and solvent effects on facial diastereoselectivity" and the "Biological performance of materials". Chapter 9 presents "Oxide superconductors: a chemists view".

Papers presenting "Molecular switches based on the [Ni^II(cyclam)]²⁺fragment", "Molecular conformations in organic monolayers affect their ability to resist protein adsorption", "Electrochemical and structural aspects of metallofullerenes" and "Polyoxometalates and coordination polymers", form chapters 10 to 13.

The final two chapters of the book address "Modelling interpretation of the kinetics of metabolic processes" and "Computer simulation and molecular design of model liquid crystals".

Jon Rigelsford