Unit 8: Electronic Structure of Coordination Complexes
Coordination compounds are important to all areas of chemistry, engineering, the life and environmental sciences, and beyond. In the synthetic laboratory catalytic amounts of coordination compounds enable organic chemists to synthesize new compounds selectively and in high yield under mild conditions. Applied industrially, coordination compound catalysts serve as vital catalysts that facilitate the conversion of raw petrochemical or bio-derived feedstocks into useful industrial and consumer products. Without them life as we know it would be impossible, as many biochemical systems are coordination complexes. Examples include the hemoglobin that transports oxygen around our bodies and the myoglobin that stores it, the photosystems that harvest light and use light energy in photosynthesis, the constituents of the respiratory chain, and many of the enzymes involved in the expression and transmission of genetic information. In studying coordination chemistry you are about to take your first steps into a vast and exciting world.