Dr Peter VanNatta

Expertise

• Synthetic and computational chemistry and spectroscopy
• Special focus on magnetic spectroscopies (EPR, NMR, SQUID)
• Transition metal and metal-free catalysis and electrocatalysis
• C-H bond activation at extreme-pressure
• Framework materials synthesis and characterization

Research

• Frustrated Lewis pair hydrogenation catalysis in heterogeneous framework materials for asymmetric catalysis of pharmaceutical precursors
• Recalcitrant C-H bond activation by geometric and electronic structure perturbations of dinuclear copper complexes towards selective methane monooxygenation at room temperature
• Investigation of thermodynamically accessible pathways of homogeneous electrocatalysts for water oxidation
• Design and synthesis of lanthanide-based MOFs and evaluation of photophysical behavior for on/off sensing of small molecules 
• Interrogation of quadrupolar nuclei and paramagnetic species by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy