Support of kallol Ray as Einstein Professor

Understanding the basic chemistry of dioxygen formation and activation is of paramount importance in the development of clean and sustainable energy. The economic and social development of the world is also strongly dependent on the development of environmentally benign, efficient, and selective catalytic systems. Today, the world’s attention is focused on the energy problem, and the solution will require a deep commitment from the communities of environmental, catalytic, and bioinspired chemistry. In addition to the aspects of green chemistry and green energy production, dioxygen is a source of both beneficial and detrimental processes in chemical biology. The proposed research dealing mainly with Dioxygen Formation-Activation-Catalysis will reveal the information essential to the understanding of the roles of metal ions, their structures, their formation mechanisms, and the reactivities of active intermediates at the active sites of metalloenzymes. The proposed research will also yield information that will lead to the solution of two of the most fundamental problems within the areas of green oxidation and green energy production: How can the oxidative power of metal-oxygen species be controlled in industrial and biological reactions? And how can solar energy be captured for use in the photocatalytic oxidation and reduction of water? The present bioinspired basic research is therefore devoted to the development of bioinspired energy conversion and green oxidation. The long term aim is to develop "intelligent" catalysis in oxidation reactions that can be used in industry and energy production, which has tremendous socio-economic value.