Centre staff
Professor David Allen
Emeritus professor of chemistry
Phone 0114 225 3002
Email d.w.allen@shu.ac.uk
Research interests
Organophosphorus chemistry
Main research emphasis is in the field of organophosphorus chemistry, in particular that of phosphonium salts and related compounds. Current interests include the preparation of phosphonioalkyl derivatives of biologically active molecules, the phosphonioalkyl group facilitating the passage of the biologically active agent through cell membranes, and studies of the formation of biologically active surface-functionalised gold nanoparticles. The ability of the phosphonium cation to be involved in 'hypervalent' interactions with donor molecules is also being studied, providing models of reactive intermediates in enzyme-catalysed reactions of organophosphorus compounds.
Recent publications
Journals
Ju-Nam, Y., Allen, D. W., Gardiner, P. H. E., and Bricklebank, N, (2008), ω-Thioacetylalkylphosphonium salts: Precursors for the preparation of phosphonium-functionalised gold nanaoparticles. J. Organometallic Chem. 693, 3504-3508.
Ju-Nam, Y., Allen, D. W., Gardiner, P. H. E., Light, M. E., Hursthouse, M. B., and Bricklebank, N, (2007), The synthesis and characterisation of masked phosphonioalkyl selenoates; potential ligands for the production of functionalised gold nanoparticles. J. Organometallic Chem. 692, 5065-5070.
Ju-Nam, Y., Bricklebank, N., Allen, D. W., Gardiner, P. H. E., Light, M. E., and Hursthouse, M. B. (2006). Phosphonioalkylthiosulfate zwitterions - new masked thiolate ligands for the formation of cationic functionalised gold nanoparticles. Organic and Biomol. Chem., 4, 4345-4351.
Allen DW, Coles SJ, Hursthouse MB. and Khan SM (2004) Hypervalent interactions in anthraquinone-based Group 15 'onium salts - fact or fiction? Inorg. Chim. Acta, 357: 265-270.
Allen DW, Coles SJ, Light ME and Hursthouse MB (2004) Synthesis, and X-ray crystal structures of organotri(2-furyl)phosphonium salts. Effects of 2-furyl substituents at phosphorus on intramolecular nitrogen to phosphorus hypervalent coordinative interactions. Inorg. Chim Acta, 357: 1558-156.
Allen DW, Berridge R , Bricklebank N, Cerada E , Light ME, Hursthouse MB , Laguna N , Moreno A and Skabara PJ (2003) A new family of sulfur-rich ligands based on the dmit system: synthesis and metal complexation of 4-4'-covalently bridged bis(2-thioxo-1,3-dithiolato) units. J. Chem. Soc. , Dalton Trans., 2654-2659.
Allen DW, Berridge R, Bricklebank N, Forder, SD, Palacio F, Coles SJ, Hursthouse MB and Skabara PJ (2003) Structural and magnetic properties of a novel ferrocenyl-diiodine charge transfer complex. Inorg. Chem., 42: 3975-3977.
Allen DW, Light ME, and Hursthouse MB (2002) Hypervalent intramolecular coordination in main group chemistry: a template synthesis and crystal structure of an ortho-oximinoarylphosphonium salt. J. Chem. Research (S): 537-539.
Sökmen M , Allen DW, Clench MR and Hewson AT (2002) GC-MS characterisation of products of oxidation of thiophenes using the Fenton and related reagents. J. Adv. Oxid . Technol., 5: 11-21.
Allen DW, Gelbrich T and Hursthouse MB (2001) Pentacoordination in Group 15 'onium salts. A room-temperature synthesis of an intramolecularly pentacoordinated tetraarylstibonium salt containing the new polyiodocuprate anion [Cu14I18](4-), and a structural comparison with related pentacoordinated arsonium. Inorg. Chim. Acta, 218(1-2): 31-37.
Ashwell GJ, Skjonnemand K , Paxton GAN, Allen DW, Mifflin JPL and Li X (2001) Merocyanine dyes: dimeric aggregation in solution, film structure and pH sensing. J. Mater. Chem., 11(5): 1351-1356.
Benomar SH, Clench MR and Allen DW (2001) The analysis of alkylphenol ethoxysulphonate surfactants by high-performance liquid chromatography, liquid chromatography-electro spray ionisation-mass spectrometry and matrix-assisted laser desorption ionisation-mass spectrometry. Anal. Chim. Acta., 445(2): 255-267.
Berridge R, Bricklebank N, Allen DW, Skabara PJ, Malik KMA, Coles SJ and Hursthouse MB (2001) Novel transition metal complexes based on covalently linked DMIT systems. Synthetic Metals, 120: 1023-1024.
Sökmen M, Allen DW, Akkas F, Kartel N and Acar F (2001) Photo-degradation of some dyes using Ag-loaded titanium dioxide. Water Air Soil Poll., 132 (1-2): 153-163.
Sökmen M, Allen DW, Hewson AT, and Clench MR (2001). Photocatalytic oxidative degradation of 2-methylthiophene in suspensions of TiO2 : identification of intermediates and degradation pathways. J. Photochem . Photobiol., 141: 63-67.
Reviews
Allen DW (2002-2003) Tervalent Phosphorus Acid Derivatives: a series of annual reviews of the recent literature, published in 'Organophosphorus Chemistry' A Specialist Periodical Report, Royal Society of Chemistry, vol 32-33
Allen DW (1996-2004) Phosphines and Phosphonium Salts: a series of annual reviews of the literature, published in 'Organophosphorus Chemistry', A Specialist Periodical Report, Royal Society of Chemistry, vol 27-34.
Allen DW (2005-2011) Phosphines and Related Tervalent Phosphorus Systems: a series of annual reviews of the literature, published in 'Organophosphorus Chemistry', A Specialist Periodical Report, Royal Society of Chemistry, vol 35-40.
Allen DW (with Tebby JC) (2007) Arylphosphonium Salts and Derivatives: published in 'Science of Synthesis' (Houben-Weyl Methods of Molecular Transformation), volume 31b, 2083-2104, George Thieme Verlag KG, Stuttgart, New York.
