
Scripps Research chemists develop new sustainable reaction for creating unique molecular building blocks The building blocks can be used to create polymers with previously unexplored structures and fine-tunable properties, with applications across energy storage and more.
August 08, 2024
LA JOLLA, CA Polymers can be thought of like trains: Just as a train is composed of multiple cars, polymers are made up of multiple monomers, and the couplings between the train cars are similar to the chemical bonds that link monomers together. While polymers have myriad applications from drug delivery to construction materials their structures and functions are restricted by the chemically similar monomer building blocks they're composed of.
Now, Scripps Research chemists and additional collaborators have developed a new reaction to create unique monomers in a controlled way. This reaction, which uses nickel as a catalyst, ultimately enables scientists to create polymers with unique and modifiable properties for drug delivery, energy storage, microelectronics and more. The study was published in Nature Synthesis on August 8, 2024.
This study shows how earth-abundant metal catalysts can unlock the path toward previously unknown materials with unparalleled structural and functional diversity, says senior author Keary Engle, PhD, a professor in the Department of Chemistry and dean of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies at Scripps Research.
The Engle lab at Scripps Research focuses on developing new chemical reactions to build a wide and diverse array of small molecules, typically with applications in drug discovery. In this study, the Scripps Research team collaborated with polymer researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology and the University of Pittsburgh to test whether their methods could be scaled up to create unique polymers.
The properties of polymers are very much dependent on what type of chemistry is on the backbone, so if you can modify the chemistry of the building blocks, then you can easily apply it to the macromolecular structure that youre building, says Anne Ravn, PhD, a postdoctoral researcher in the Engle lab at Scripps Research and co-first author on the paper. With this project we wanted to test whether our strategy for developing small molecules could be applied to a bigger picture to provide new building blocks for polymer synthesis.
The paper's other first authors are Van Tran, PhD, who worked on the project as a graduate student in the Engle lab; Camille Rubel, a current graduate student in the Engle lab; Mizhi Xu, PhD, a former graduate student in the Gutekunst lab at the Georgia Institute of Technology; and Yue Fu, PhD, a former graduate student in the Liu lab at the University of Pittsburgh.
To create the new monomers, the Scripps Research team developed a chemical reaction that alters the structure of a starting molecule by using nickel as a catalyst. The nickel-catalyzed reaction added two new functional groups to the molecule small side chains that confer different chemical and physical properties on the ensuing polymer, for example, how flexible, elastic or soluble it is.
Then, the team's collaborators at Georgia Institute of Technology used another chemical reaction to link the monomers together via polymerization, resulting in polymers with a unique structure.
Most commercial polymers have two carbons in between each functional group that are not decorated with any side chains, but in this case, the functional groups are much closer in space, which creates a material with different properties, says Ravn.
In the future, the team plans to explore the impact of substituting different functional groups onto the monomers.
Our strategy allows us to decorate' the molecule with much more flexibility than other methods, which gives us more freedom to explore different types of functionalities in the building blocks, says Ravn. Were now working to expand the method to explore how introducing other types of functional groups changes the properties of the material.
Because nickel is more abundant than many other metal catalysts used in this type of chemical reaction, the researchers say that their method holds promise as an environmentally sustainable method for polymer production. They're also exploring ways to make the products even more sustainable.
From an environmental perspective, we want to find a method to degrade these long polymers so that we can get back to the original building blocks, which would allow us to reuse them, says Ravn. This is a tool that we hope to fine-tune in the future to ultimately create new technologies that are useful for society.
Ni-catalysed dicarbofunctionalization for the synthesis of sequence-encoded cyclooctene monomers was co-authored by Ethan Wagner, Steven R. Wisniewski, Peng Liu, and Will Gutekunst of Scripps Research.
Support for the research was provided by the Department of Energy (DESC0023205), the National Science Foundation (CHE-2102550), the Independent Research Fund Denmark (grant ID: 10.46540/3102-00009B), and the Schimmel Family Endowed Scholarship Fund.
Molecular Medicine Engle, Keary
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
09/06/2026
Kiswe announces an expanded long-term partnership with ONE Championship (ONE), t...
09/06/2026
SiriusXM will broadcast FOX Sports' English-language commentary for all 104 FIFA World Cup 2026 matches from June 11 through July 19, available to subscribe...
09/06/2026
EVS has announced it is changing its corporate name from EVS Broadcast Equipment to EVS, reflecting the company's expanded portfolio beyond broadcast equipm...
09/06/2026
Fox Corporation and the NFL have announced a multi-year agreement to bring NFL c...
09/06/2026
FOX Sports and ReachTV, an airport media network, have announced an agreement to...
09/06/2026
Cosm Atlanta, a 70,000-square-foot, three-level immersive entertainment venue located within Centennial Yards adjacent to State Farm Arena and Mercedes-Benz Sta...
09/06/2026
NESN captured five awards at the 2026 Boston/New England Emmy Awards, including four program honors and one individual award.
These awards reflect the passion...
09/06/2026
Ateme has announced that its support for Apple Immersive Video workflows was referenced by Apple during its 2026 Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC26).
Atem...
09/06/2026
Bitmovin has announced that Axel Springer SE has deployed Player Web X, Bitmovin's web video player, to power audio readouts of news articles and an audio-o...
09/06/2026
Grass Valley and Lawo have announced a technology collaboration to validate orch...
09/06/2026
LiveU has announced a deployment with the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) t...
09/06/2026
Globecast has announced the launch of its Content Exchange platform, powered by ...
09/06/2026
NBC Sports will present live coverage of Overtime's OT7 football league Championship Weekend from Sullivan Field at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angel...
09/06/2026
We're in three different locations, three different production teams. Coveri...
09/06/2026
The intro video for Men's Basketball won Outstanding In-Venue Video in the C...
09/06/2026
Today is match day minus two for FIFA and HBS. On Thursday, there will be two ma...
09/06/2026
Since their debut, the clock-and-score graphic has drawn the affinity and ire of...
09/06/2026
Last month, Spotify hosted PURE FLOWERS LIVE, a special event celebrating the re...
09/06/2026
Last month, RADAR U.K. artist Skye Newman took the stage in East London for a sp...
09/06/2026
Company to cease operating on 30 June 2026
Australian loudspeaker and amplifier manufacturer Wayne Jones Audio have announced that after much consideration,...
09/06/2026
Increases low-end weight and character
The latest plug-in release from Sheffield-based fedDSP aims to offer an all-in-one solution for users in search of mo...
09/06/2026
Introduces AI Studio Assistant, Moises Studio integration & more
Fender Studio have just announced the launch a significant update that brings an array of n...
09/06/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is a statutory body mandated to spearhead the equitable growth and development of the South African film and video...
09/06/2026
The BBC has found its Hercule Poirot.
After Deadline revealed last month that t...
09/06/2026
Media buyers and sellers can now compare YouTube reach from computer, mobile, an...
09/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/06/2026
A project aimed at modernizing scheduling operations across Mediaset's channel portfolio
Mediagenix, a global leader in smart content solutions to profitab...
09/06/2026
tvONE, an ACT Entertainment brand, debuts its most powerful video processor ever built: the 4RU CALICO PRO (C7-PRO-4200), at InfoComm 2026 (Booth N6813). Engine...
09/06/2026
Composer and Conductor Eric Whitacre to Receive Honorary Doctorate at Berklee Va...
09/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/06/2026
Technology collaboration to validate AMPP and Lawo HOME orchestration integration, showcasing Dynamic Media Facility principles in practice.
Grass Valley and ...
09/06/2026
Bitmovin, a leading provider of video streaming solutions, today announced that Axel Springer SE, international media and technology company, has deployed Playe...
09/06/2026
LiveU, the global leader in live IP-video solutions, today announced a landmark deployment with the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) that has brought Video ...
09/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/06/2026
Two Alumni Win Tony Awards Mike Morris and Cedric Leiba Jr. won awards for Best Orchestrations and Best Play, respectively.
June 8, 2026
By
Tori Donahue
...
09/06/2026
X-Rite Pantone Launches Offset360 to Modernize Color Control Across Existing Pre...
09/06/2026
09 Jun 2026
VEON Appoints Serkan Ozturk as Chief of Staff & Strategy Officer Dubai and New York, June 9, 2026 - VEON Ltd. (NASDAQ: VEON), a global digital oper...
09/06/2026
Tuesday 9 June 2026
Katie Price: Nothing to Hide, a candid and unfiltered accou...
09/06/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils First Images And Poster For Wrath, A New Brazi...
09/06/2026
Enni Continues to Rely on Arvato Systems - And Will Be Using AEP.EnerS4 Billing Solution
Arvato Systems to implement transformation project for SAP S/4HANA Ut...