| Non-covalent interactions often define how a molecule interacts with the world. Whether it is in how two molecules form a particular crystal structure in the solid state, or how a polymer orients itself in the active site of an enzyme; hydrogen bonding, pi-stacking, Van der Waals and electrostatic forces are responsible for all of these types of phenomenon. This work focuses on how these forces can be utilized to help create new materials as well as to help understand how these forces when applied in nature can help solve human problems via bioinspiration. The first project presented is the creation of a cocrystal for a solid-state Diels-Alder cycloaddition reaction. The second project focuses on the cloning and purification of an enzyme for the recycling of a bioinspired polymer photoresist system. In utilizing and understanding these types of non-covalent interactions, green chemistry solutions are often a welcome by-product. By preventing the creation of waste, reducing energy input, minimizing the use of organic solvents and hazardous reagents, and improving atom economy, the "toolbox" of available green chemistry transformations and solutions is inevitably filled. |
