Start: November 9, 2023 3:30 p.m.
End: November 9, 2023 4:30 p.m.
New Pathways for Commodity Chemical Synthesis from Methane and Carbon Dioxide
Dr. Karen Draths
Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry, Michigan State University
Thursday, 11/09 @ 3:30 PM in FB 253
Two pressing grand challenges society faces are 1) rising atmospheric levels of methane and carbon dioxide and 2) identification of sustainable strategies for production of chemicals and fuels from non-food feedstocks. To address these challenges, research in our group is advancing acetylenecarboxylic acid (ACA) and acetylenedicarboxylic acid (ADCA) as junction points that link known chemistry of carbon dioxide and methane with enzyme catalysis. ACA and ADCA are similar to biomass-derived feedstocks in that they represent fixed carbon atoms that may be transformed into chemical building blocks from which commodity chemicals are produced. In this talk I will describe our progress in exploring the chemistry and enzymology necessary to advance this alternative strategy for sustainable chemical production.