Richard R. Schrock

Metal–carbon compounds

Organometallic compounds place a metal in direct contact with carbon. Their bonds range from highly polar M–C σ bonds to multicentre metal–ligand interactions such as η² alkene, η⁵ cyclopentadienyl and metal carbonyl coordination.

Homogeneous catalysis (Ziegler–Natta, Grubbs)

A homogeneous catalyst moves through a closed sequence of elementary steps in the same phase as the substrate. Small changes in ligands, oxidation state or vacant sites can redirect an entire cycle and change selectivity.