College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Iowa State University

Distinguished service

American Chemical Society recognizes James Espenson for his work in inorganic chemistry.
Each year, the American Chemical Society (ACS) hands out two awards to inorganic chemists.

James Espenson, distinguished professor of liberal arts and sciences and professor of chemistry, will receive the ACS Award for Distinguished Service in the Advancement of Inorganic Chemistry this March at the organization’s national meeting.

It's an award he refers to as "the old man’s award." It recognizes individuals who advance inorganic chemistry by significant service in addition to performance of outstanding research.

"This is a career award that is a vote of confidence in me and my contributions to the community of inorganic chemists," he said. "The award is 40 years old and when I look over the names of the previous winners it's a mighty distinguished group to be included in."

Ironically Espenson started at Iowa State almost at the same time that ACS created the award. For the past 40 years, he has been a member of the Department of Chemistry faculty and a chemist in the U.S. Department of Energy (DoE) Ames Laboratory.

His research looks at transition metal catalysts and mechanisms and applications.

"We conduct studies of how inorganic compounds come together and undergo chemical reactions to make new products,”" Espenson said. "Transition metal complexes afford endless excitement and novelty."

In Espenson's research, transition metal complexes serve as catalysts for chemical reactions, as participants in atom-transfer mechanisms, as reagents in new reactions, and as templates for coordination phenomena offering new structural and electronic insights.

"We've worked on many different aspects of this subject but transition metal complexes is the underlying theme of our research," he said. "There's always something fresh. The subject never goes stale.

"On occasion we stumble onto something new, but generally we plan our work in advance and through our studies move it towards completion."

For the past dozen years, Espenson has turned his research group's efforts to compounds of the element Rhenium (Re). This element in high oxidation state compounds is best for the purposes he requires.

"A tiny bit of this compound will make a reaction take place," he said. "But if you leave out Rhenium, there is no reaction at all."

Espenson's research has led to the publication of 375 refereed journal articles and a book, Chemical Kinetics and Reaction Mechanisms, published by McGraw-Hill. The book is now in its second edition and has been translated into both Japanese and Korean.

He is also the founding chair of a new professional conference in his research specialty.

"There was a major gap about ten years ago in inorganic reaction mechanisms," Espenson said. "Now there is a week-long conference in this area held every two years."

The book, journal articles, conference and research all have led to his receiving the ACS award. They were also instrumental in his selection previously as a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Espenson credits his success to the joint appointment he holds with Iowa State and the Ames Laboratory.

"This is a marvelous opportunity for a scientist," he said. "The arrangement between the Ames Lab and Iowa State should be the envy of most universities and national labs.

"The DoE has taken a very enlightened attitude to scientists like myself who follow their noses to where the hot research leads them."