
Professor Robin Bedford
B.Sc. (Hons.), D.Phil.(Sus.)
Current positions
Professor of Catalysis
School of Chemistry
Contact
Press and media
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Research interests
Our research centres on the development of new catalysts and the catalysis of novel organic reactions.
This research lies at the interface of organic and inorganic chemistry: in our group the development of novel synthetic methodology goes hand in hand with catalyst development and mechanistic investigation.
We are particularly interested in developing new organic reactions that proceed via catalytic C-H activation and producing new catalysts for challenging coupling reactions, with a particular emphasis on the use of iron. Catalysts produced in the group range from organometallic complexes with well defined ligand architectures to nanoparticulate metals.
Professor Bedford is a supervisor in the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Chemical Synthesis
Projects and supervisions
Research projects
FeMech: exploring the selectivity of iron-catalysed Suzuki biaryl coupling
Principal Investigator
Managing organisational unit
School of ChemistryDates
01/10/2022 to 30/09/2023
Catalysis for the Circular Economy and Sustainable Manufacturing
Principal Investigator
Managing organisational unit
School of ChemistryDates
01/05/2019 to 20/10/2021
ParaFeMec: A Collaborative Mechanistic Approach to Paramagnetic Iron Catalysis
Principal Investigator
Managing organisational unit
School of ChemistryDates
01/08/2015 to 30/09/2017
Catalasomes: switchable, programmable catalytic nanoreactors
Principal Investigator
Managing organisational unit
School of ChemistryDates
06/01/2014 to 06/06/2015
The Ironworks: a mechanistic foundry for iron-catalysed cross-coupling
Principal Investigator
Managing organisational unit
School of ChemistryDates
01/03/2013 to 31/07/2017
Thesis supervisions
Mechanistic and Reactivity Studies of First-Row Complexes as Catalysts in Cross-Coupling Reactions.
Supervisors
Insight into the mechanism of iron- and cobalt-catalysed Suzuki cross-coupling processes
Supervisors
Cobalt-catalysed Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling
Supervisors
Advances in Iron-Catalysed Cross-Coupling Reactions
Supervisors
Cobalt-Catalysed Suzuki-Miyaura Cross-Coupling
Supervisors
Organolithium-mediated assembly of five-membered rings bearing contiguous stereocentres
Supervisors
Iron-Catalysed Cross-Couplings of Organoboron Reagents
Supervisors
Kinetics and Equilibrium in Iron-Catalysed Cross-Coupling Reactions
Supervisors
Publications
Recent publications
10/01/2025Iron-Catalyzed Miyaura Borylation of Aryl Chlorides and Triflates
Organic Letters
A re-examination of claims of aminoferrocene–graphene-based molecular magnets
Applied Physics Letters
Iron-catalysed C–H ortho-arylation of edaravone, a promising monoamine oxidase-B inhibitor
Tetrahedron
The iron-catalysed Suzuki coupling of aryl chlorides
Nature Catalysis
Cobalt-Catalyzed Coupling of Aryl Chlorides with Aryl Boron Esters Activated by Alkoxides
ACS Catalysis