University of Toronto Department of Chemistry
| Type | Academic department |
|---|---|
| Established | 1843 |
Parent institution | Faculty of Arts and Science University of Toronto |
| Chair | Robert Batey |
Academic staff | 99[1] |
| Location | , , |
| Website | chemistry |
The University of Toronto Department of Chemistry, established in 1843, is an administrative unit within the Faculty of Arts and Science.
History[edit]
In 1843, Henry Croft arrived from England to become the first professor of chemistry and experimental philosophy at the University of King’s College (which is now known as the University of Toronto).[2] In 1849, Croft resided in the first purpose built chemistry laboratory in Canada in the "Round Room", now known as the Croft Chapter House.[3]
The Senate officially renamed the Chair of Chemistry and Experimental Philosophy to be known as the Department of Chemistry in 1880.[3]
After 1894, the department moved from the Old Chemistry Building to the Wallberg Building, before finally moving to the Lash Miller Laboratories in 1964, which is where the department resides today.[4]
In 1986, Professor John Polanyi became the first faculty member in the department to win the Nobel Prize in chemistry. He, along with Professor Dudley R. Herschbach of Harvard University and Professor Yuan T. Lee of UC Berkeley were recognized for "their contributions concerning the dynamics of chemical elementary processes."[5]
Scientific discoveries[edit]
Brook Rearrangement
In the late 1950s, Adrian Brook discovered a rearrangement reaction in organosilicon chemistry that was later named the Brook rearrangement. He also synthesized the first stable compounds containing silicon-carbon double bonds.[6]
Photodegradable Plastics
While attempting to create polymers that were less resistant to ultraviolet rays from the sun, Jim Guillet discovered, through a Norrish reaction, a process for making plastics (such as foam coffee cups and fast food clam-shell containers) decompose in sunlight.[7][8]
Frustrated Lewis Pairs
Douglas Stephan is the pioneer of the Frustrated Lewis pair, a compound or mixture containing a Lewis acid and a Lewis base that cannot combine to form a classical adduct.[9] They have many uses in small molecule activation, catalysis and carbon capture.
Research[edit]
The department has eight research divisions[10]
- Analytical Chemistry
- Biological and Organic Chemistry
- Chemical Physics
- Environmental Chemistry
- Inorganic Chemistry
- Physical Chemistry
- Polymer and Materials Chemistry
Ranking[edit]
The Department of Chemistry at the University of Toronto consistently ranks among the highest in the world. In 2021, the University of Toronto was ranked first in Canada (and 19th worldwide) in the subject of Chemistry by the QS World University Rankings.[11]
Research Faculty[edit]
There are 53 research faculty members with primary appointments to the department of chemistry. These include:
- Jonathan Abbatt
- Alán Aspuru-Guzik
- Rebecca Jockusch
- Eugenia Kumacheva
- Mark Lautens
- R. J. Dwayne Miller
- Geoffrey Ozin
- John Polanyi
- Douglas Stephan
Notable alumni[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ "Chemistry". Department of Chemistry. Department of Chemistry. Retrieved 31 October 2019.
- ↑ "Canada's History - Canada's History".
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "U of T Chronology; Heritage U of T".
- ↑ "Department of Chemistry - Historical Dates".
- ↑ "The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1986". NobelPrize.org.
- ↑ "Adrian G. Brook | Chemical & Engineering News". cen.acs.org.
- ↑ "James Guillet, chemist and teacher: 1927-2005" – via The Globe and Mail.
- ↑ Daglen, Bevin C.; Tyler, David R. (June 1, 2010). "Photodegradable plastics: end-of-life design principles". Green Chemistry Letters and Reviews. 3 (2): 69–82. doi:10.1080/17518250903506723.
- ↑ Whited, Matthew T. (September 18, 2012). "Metal–ligand multiple bonds as frustrated Lewis pairs for C–H functionalization". Beilstein Journal of Organic Chemistry. 8 (1): 1554–1563. doi:10.3762/bjoc.8.177. PMC 3510986. PMID 23209486.
- ↑ "Overview". www.chemistry.utoronto.ca. April 23, 2019.
- ↑ "Chemistry". Top Universities. February 24, 2021.
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