Phil A. W. Dean

Phil A. W. Dean

Contact Information

Title: Professor Emeritus
Office: Rm 122 ChB
Phone (Office): 519-661-2111 ext 86331
E-mail: pawdean@uwo.ca 

Research Areas

Inorganic, Bioinorganic and Organometallic Chemistry, particularly when involving Applications of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy

Traditional Research Division:
Inorganic

Education

B.Sc., Ph.D., London

Research

Chalcogenate and related complexes of the zinc-group and p-block elements - We have a long-standing interest in the synthesis, multinuclear magnetic resonance spectra and structures of species containing an adamantane-like cage of the type (m -ER)6M4 (E = S,Se,Te; M = Zn,Cd,Hg; R = aryl or alkyl), in which there may be a variety of terminal ligands attached to M. These complexes are interesting for many reasons: the RS--bridged complexes are structural and spectroscopic models for biological binding sites; all the complexes exhibit an interesting form of configurational isomerism; the tetranuclear aggregates may be converted into larger aggregates or (with appropriate linkers) form the basis for open, zeolite-like lattices, etc. The coordination chemistry of potential linkers is an area of active interest. Our work on these adamantanoid species has been part of a more general study of the chemistry of ligands in which at least one of the donor atoms is a chalcogen. An additional area of current interest is in the chemistry of such ligands with the p-block elements. Relatively little is yet known about complexes of these elements with Se-donor ligands, and even less about complexes with Te-donor ligands, although solid selenides and tellurides are very important technologically. Therefore we are carrying out exploratory synthetic chemistry in this area. Along the way, we have, with collaborators, been spending a lot of effort on complexes of thiocarboxylates, which are possible precursors to element sulfides in technologically-desirable forms. In addition, some of our compounds show interesting packing motifs in the solid state and we have been collaborating with other colleagues in this general area.

Teaching

  • 020 - General Chemistry
  • 390a - Industry Internship

Publications

  • Facets of van der Waals Radii That Are Not Commonly Included in Undergraduate Textbooks.  Dean, Philip A.W.  Journal of Chemical Education, (2014), 91, 154-157  

  • A mass spectrometric investigation of clusters formed by sodium cations and pentacyanonitrosylferrate(2-) anions in the gas phase, and an exploration of structures of some of the clusters using Density Functional Theory.  Dean, Philip A. W.; Fisher, Keith J.; Guthrie, J. Peter; Willett, Gary D. Inorganica Chimica Acta, (2013), 394, 300-309.  

  • The crystallisation and packing of [Cr(C2O4Ag(PPh3)2)3](Ph3P/Ph3PO)(MeNO2)4.  Dean, Philip A. W.; Craig, Donald C.; Scudder, Marcia L.; Dance, Ian G.  CrystEngComm, (2008), 10(8), 1044-1046.  

  • A synthetic, structural, and 113Cd NMR study of cadmium complexes of 1,3-thiazolidine-2-thionate, including the structures of Cd(C3H4NS2)2, Cd(C3H4NS2)2(C5H5N)3·C5H5N, and (Ph4P)2[I2Cd(μ-C3H4NS2)2CdI2].  Craig, Donald C.; Dance, Ian G.; Dean, Philip A. W.; Hook, James M.; Jenkins, Hilary A.; Kirby, Christopher W.; Scudder, Marcia L.; Rajalingam, Umarani .  Canadian Journal of Chemistry, (2005), 83(2), 174-184.   

  • A Variable Ag-Cr-Oxalate Channel Lattice: [MxAg0.5-x(H2O)3]@[Ag2.5Cr(C2O4)3], M = K, Cs, Ag .  Dean, Philip A. W.; Craig, Don; Dance, Ian; Russell, Vanessa; Scudder, Marcia.  Inorganic Chemistry, (2004), 43(2), 443-449.