Summary of the Award

Dr. Toshiaki Murai, Faculty of Engineering, Gifu University, received the Chemical Society of Japan Award. 　The Chemical Society of Japan Award is given to researchers who have conducted valuable research on basic or applied chemistry and whose achievements are particularly outstanding. 　Dr. Murai received the award for 2022 for his "Development of New Reactions and Materials Based on the Characteristics of Unsaturated Bonds Containing Heavier Main Group Elements." The award lecture and ceremony were held on March 23 (Thursday).

Details of the Research

He developed new molecules with unsaturated bonds involving phosphorus, sulfur, selenium, and tellurium atom, which are located below nitrogen and oxygen atoms in the periodic table of the elements, and disclosed their fundamental structures and electronic properties. Furthermore, he developed a new method to combine multiple components in a single operation, providing a reaction system applicable to the synthesis of pharmaceuticals. For example, he succeeded in the development of an efficient synthetic method for organophosphorus compounds with a chiral phosphorus atom from a combination of readily available chemicals.