25
March
2007
|
18:00 PM
America/New_York

Shore Wins ACS Award In Inorganic Chemistry

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- When Sheldon G. Shore accepts his latest and most distinguished award from the American Chemical Society (ACS), he will reflect on a 50-year career full of technological developments.

Over the years, he's made a catalyst that creates an ingredient for nylon, and devised a technique for implanting elemental boron in computer chips. Even his earliest achievement -- a material for hydrogen storage -- is still relevant today.

Sheldon Shore

Shore, Distinguished Professor of Mathematical and Physical Sciences and Kimberly Professor of Chemistry at Ohio State, will be presented the ACS Award in Inorganic Chemistry Monday, March 26, 2007, at the national meeting of the society in Chicago.

The award recognizes chemists who have "accomplished outstanding research in the preparation, properties, reactions, or structure of inorganic substances." Shore was cited for his "pioneering work in the area of boron hydrides, metal cluster carbonyls, and lanthanide transition-metal systems." According to ACS, special consideration for the award is given to researchers who exhibit independence of thought and originality -- two concepts that encapsulate Shore's career.

Boron hydrides are molecules of boron and hydrogen that are unique among inorganic compounds. The creation of these compounds was once very difficult; nearly 50 years ago, Shore found the "missing link" in a series of reactions that paved the way for chemists to synthesize boron hydrides and other exotic boron-containing molecules.

In his award address, Shore will discuss how his work in boron hydrides led him to explore other materials that enable industrial processes. For instance, he has helped Ohio State engineers develop a catalyst to remove nitrogen oxides from power plant emissions. Another of his catalysts converts phenol -- an industrial waste -- into an ingredient of nylon. He has earned 12 patents, including one for a technique to create a pure form of a compound that is used to implant elemental boron in computer chips.

Shore's work has spanned vast areas of the periodic table, as he's found ways to apply his basic research where it's most needed in industry.

"If there's one thing in my career I'm especially proud of, it's that I was able to change with the times," Shore said.

He was the first person to synthesize ammonia borane, which experts had once predicted to be to be too unstable to isolate. He not only created the compound, but showed it to be stable at high temperatures. Because solid ammonia borane can store and release hydrogen, researchers around the globe are currently studying it as a possible material for hydrogen fuel cells.

Shore has authored more than 270 scientific publications and has received numerous awards and recognitions for his research. Most notable among these are the ACS Columbus Section Award, the ACS Cleveland Section's Morley Medal, and election as a corresponding member of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences. Ohio State has honored him with the title of Distinguished Professor of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, the Distinguished Lecturer Award, the Distinguished Scholar Award, and the Charles H. Kimberly Chair of Chemistry.

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Contact: Sheldon Shore, (614) 292-6000; Shore.1@osu.edu

Written by Pam Frost Gorder, (614) 292-9475; Gorder.1@osu.edu