Organometallic hydrogenases

H2 serves as the alternative energy source relative to fossil fuels and biomass [181] because it is clean and environmentally friendly. Hence, catalytic hydrogen generation from water under mild conditions is one of the goals for the organometallic catalysis. One of the hopeful methods is the electrochemical reduction of protons by a hydrogenase mimic. 

Lyon, E. J., Georgakaki, I. R, Reibenspies, J. H. and Darensbourg, M. Y. (1999) Carbon monoxide and cyanide ligands in a classical organometallic complex model for Fe-only hydrogenase. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. Engl., 38, 3178-80. 

Darensbourg MY, Lyon EJ, Smee JJ (2000) The bio-organometallic chemistry of active site iron in hydrogenases. Coord Chem Rev 206-207 533-561... 

Darensbourg, Tom Rauchfuss, and Chris Picket saw a simple diiron organometallic molecule as an obvious mimic of the iron hydrogenase active site. Darensbourg said that this comparison was a good starting point for modeling... 

Thomas Rauchfuss, University of Illinois at Urbana introduced his presentation by explaining that there is a lot of organometallic chemistry occurring in nature. In addition, he said the country s future is likely to be tied to synthetic gas, so there is a need for research on bioinspired syngas-like chemistry. Some of the key actors discovered so far include the aerobic CODH (CO dehydrogenase). He noted that hydrogenases are remarkable they evolved independently... 

Biological activation of hydrogen in hydrogenases mimics organometallic chemistry (and vice versa) in that acceptor ligands such as CO are used to control... 

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