Dr. Roman Belli
Title: Assistant Professor
Office: 2RC034 - Lab: 3RC033
Building: Richardson College for the Environment and Science Complex
Email: r.belli@uwinnipeg.ca
Degrees:
Ph.D. University of Victoria, 2019
B.Sc. Hons. University of Toronto, 2014
Biography:
Dr. Roman Belli received his BSc from the University of Toronto – St. George (2014) and PhD from the University of Victoria (2019). His PhD research explored the development of metal catalyst systems for hydrophosphination, with a focus on main group chemistry and mechanistic analysis. For his postdoctoral research at the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities (2020-2024), he investigated new catalytic reactions of early transition metals with redox-active ligands as well as explored transition metal aryne chemistry of N-heterocycles.
He is starting as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Winnipeg in January 2025.
Courses:
CHEM 2202 Organic Chemistry II
CHEM 3401 Inorganic Chemistry II
Research Interests:
Research in the Belli Group will focus on developing sustainable alternatives for the synthesis and application of inorganic and main group compounds. This research program is motivated to develop more efficient chemical processes, obviate the use of toxic and hazardous chemicals in industrial processes and by an awareness of the scarcity of endangered and/or technology critical elements.
Chlorine-free functionalization of main group elements: A primary method to make value-added compounds of main group elements such as P, Si and Ge relies on the use of chlorine gas (Cl2) to generate the corresponding chlorides of these elements which are easy to functionalize. To obviate the use of toxic and hazardous Cl2, we will develop chlorine-free methods to functionalize main group elements into the value-added compounds we need of them. This will be achieved using abundant chemical feedstocks as well as photocatalysis and mechanochemistry.
Metal-nitrenium chemistry for atom-economical N–C bond forming reactions: Nitrogen-containing compounds have many applications such as in pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals. Thus, developing new methods to construct N–C bonds is incredibly important. One overlooked species in this regard are electrophilic nitreniums (R2N+), where the first metal complex with a nitrenium ligand was only reported in 2011. We will explore fundamentally new ways to generate nitrenium ligands at metal centres and explore their utility in atom-economical N–C bond forming reactions.
Publications:
- Humke, J. N.*; Belli, R. G.*; Plasek, E. E.*; Kargbo, S. S.; Ansel, A. Q.; Roberts, C. C. Nickel-Bound 5-Membered N- Heterocyclic Arynes: Access to Previously “Inaccessible” 7-Aza-2,3-indolynes. Science (Status: Revisions submitted January 22nd, 2024; Manuscript ID: adi1606, *equal contribution)
- Belli, R. G.; Muir, V.; Dyck, N. B.; Slusar, C. R.; Parkin, H. C.; Rosenberg, L. Exploring Electrophilic Hydrophosphination via Metal Phosphenium Intermediates. Chem. Eur. J. 2024, e202302924 (Special Issue: Chemistry of the p-Block Elements)
- “Synthesis of Heteroarynes and Use Thereof” Roberts, C. C.; Ansel, A. Q.; Belli, R. G.; Humke, J. N.; Kargbo, S. S.; Plasek, E. E. Provisional patent filed June 23, 2023.
- Belli, R. G.; Tafuri, V. C.; Garcia, N. A.; Roberts, C. C. One- and Two-Electron Redox Catalysis with Lutetium Enabled by a Tris(Amido) Redox-Active Ligand. Organometallics 2023, 42, 1059-1064. (Special Issue: Early Transition Metals in Organometallic Chemistry)
- Gavin, J. T.*; Belli, R. G.*; Roberts, C. C. Radical-Polar Crossover Catalysis with a d0 Metal Enabled by a Redox-Active Ligand. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2022, 144, 21431-21436. (*equal contribution)
- Belli, R. G.; Tafuri, V. C.; Roberts, C. C. Improving Alkyl-Alkyl Cross-Coupling Catalysis with Early Transition Metals through Mechanistic Understanding and Metal Tuning. ACS Catal. 2022, 12, 9430-9436.
- Belli, R. G.; Tafuri, V. C.; Joannou, M. V.; Roberts, C. C. d0 Metal-Catalyzed Alkyl-Alkyl Cross-Coupling Enabled by a Redox-Active Ligand. ACS Catal. 2022, 12, 3094-3099. (Featured in Out in Inorganic Chemistry)
- Belli, R. G.; Yang, J.; Bahena, E. N.; McDonald, R.; Rosenberg, L. Mechanism and Catalyst Design in Ru-Catalyzed Alkene Hydrophosphination. ACS Catal. 2022, 12, 5247-5262.
- Belli, R. G.; Pantazis, D. A.; McDonald, R.; Rosenberg, L. Reversible Silylium Transfer Between P–H and Si–H Donors. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2021, 60, 2379-2384. (Designated Hot paper)
- Lee, P. T. K.; Samedov, K.; Belli, R. G.; Clarke, J.; Gates, D. P.; Rosenberg, L. A Mild Route to Poly(phenylsilyne): A Soluble, Highly Branched Inorganic Polymer. Chem. Commun. 2020, 56, 14063-14066.
- Belli, R. G.*; Wu, Y.*; Ji, H.; Joshi, A.; Yunker, L.; Rosenberg, L.; McIndoe, J. S. Competitive Ligand Exchange and Dissociation in Ru Indenyl Complexes. Inorg. Chem. 2019, 58, 747-755. (*equal contribution)
- Burton, K. M. E.; Pantazis, D. A.; Belli, R. G.; McDonald, R.; Rosenberg, L. Alkene Insertions into a Ru-PR2 Bond. Organometallics, 2016, 35, 3970-3980. (ACS Editors’ Choice)
- Belli, R. G.; Burton, K. M. E.; Rufh, S. A.; McDonald, R.; Rosenberg, L. Inner- and Outer-Sphere Roles of Ruthenium Phosphido Complexes in the Hydrophosphination of Alkenes. Organometallics, 2015, 34, 5637-5646.