Inorganic and Organometallic Chemistry, Catalysis and Polymer Chemistry, Supramolecular and Coordination Chemistry. All projects involve the design of new chelating ligand systems for transition metals (extended very recently to main-group metals as well) that will lead to well-defined complexes, synthesis and structural studies of these complexes, and studying of their physical and chemical properties.


• Novel catalysts for polymerization of alpha-olefins. Our group has introduced several families of ‘non-metallocene’ catalysts, most of which of the amine-phenolate type, that exhibited a broad range of activities, including: living polymerization, living and isospecific polymerization, ultra-high activities, ultra-high molecular-weight polymers, and high activities towards bulky monomers. Our recent introduction of enantiomerically-pure zirconium Salan complexes afforded the synthesis of optically-active polymers by cyclopolymerization of dienes. Complexes of these families were found to be successful catalysts for polymerization of lactide.



• Asymmetric catalysis. Analysis of the factors controlling the diastereoselective wrapping of chiral Salan ligands around octahedral metal centers led to enantiomerically-pure titanium and zirconium complexes for asymmetric catalysis.



• New ligand systems for group IV chemistry (and beyond) have been introduced recently, including amine tris(phenolate), Salophan, tetradentate amine monophenolate and Salalen.



• Organometallic chemistry of tantalum bound to amine bis(phenolate) and amine tris(triphenolate) ligands.



• Supramolecular and coordination chemistry of ‘Eilatin’-type compounds - planar aromatic molecules featuring two binding sites for metals: mononuclear and bridiging-dinuclear complexes; well-defined dimers in solution formed by pi-stacking interactions; copolymerization catalysis by palladium-eilatin complexes; splitting of NMR spectra of non-racemic enantiomer mixtures resulting from pi-stacking.

A. Rudi, Y. Kashman, D. Gut, F. Lellouche and M. Kol
Ruthenium Complexes of Eilatin: Face Selectivity in Octahedral Geometry; Synthesis of [Ru(bpy)₂(eilatin)]²⁺ and [Ru(phen) ₂(eilatin)]²⁺
Chem. Commun. 17 – 18 (1997).

G. Bar-Haim and M. Kol
Selective Syntheses of N-Monoalkyl and N,N'-Dialkyl Derivatives of 1,8-Diaminonaphthalene – 9-BBN as an Activating and Directing Group
J. Org. Chem. 62, 6682 – 6683 (1997).

E. Y. Tshuva, M. Versano, I. Goldberg, M. Kol, H. Weitman and Z. Goldschmidt
Titanium Complexes of Chelating Dianionic Amine Bis(phenolate) Ligands: an Extra Donor Makes a Big Difference
Inorg. Chem. Commun. 2, 371 – 373 (1999).

Z. Ziniuk, I. Goldberg and M. Kol
Zirconium Complexes of Chelating Dianionic (Pentafluorophenyl)amido Ligands: Synthesis, Structure and Ethylene Polymerization Activity
Inorg. Chem. Commun.2, 549 – 551 (1999).

E. Y. Tshuva, I. Goldberg, M. Kol, H. Weitman and Z. Goldschmidt
Novel Zirconium Complexes of Amine Bis(phenolate) Ligands. Remarkable Reactivity in Polymerization of 1-Hexene due to an Extra Donor Arm
Chem. Commun. 379 – 380 (2000).

E. Y. Tshuva, I. Goldberg and M. Kol
Isospecific Living Polymerization of 1-Hexene by a Readily Available Non-metallocene C₂-Symmetrical Zirconium Catalyst
J. Am. Chem. Soc. 122, 10706 – 10707 (2000).

M. Kol, M. Shamis, I. Goldberg, Z. Goldschmidt, S. Alfi and E. Hayut-Salant
Titanium(IV) Complexes of Trianionic Amine Triphenolate Ligands
Inorg. Chem. Commun. 4, 177 – 179 (2001).

E. Y. Tshuva, I. Goldberg, M. Kol and Z. Goldschmidt
Living Polymerization and Block Copolymerization of alpha-Olefins by an Amine Bis(phenolate) Titanium Catalyst
Chem. Commun. 2120 – 2121 (2001).

E. Y. Tshuva, S. Groysman, I. Goldberg, M. Kol and Z. Goldschmidt
[ONXO]-Type Amine Bis(phenolate) Zirconium and Hafnium Complexes as Extremely Reactive 1-Hexene Polymerization Catalysts: Unusual Metal Dependent Activity Pattern
Organometallics 21, 662 – 670 (2002).

D. Gut, J. Kopilov, A. Rudi, I. Goldberg and M. Kol
Pairing of Propellers: Dimerization of Octahedral Ruthenium(II) and Osmium (II) Complexes of Eilatin via pi-pi Stacking Featuring Hetero-Chiral Recognition
J. Am. Chem. Soc. 124, 5449 – 5456 (2002).

S. D. Bergman, D. Reshef, S. Groysman, I. Goldberg and M. Kol
Dibenzoeilatin: A Novel Ligand Exhibiting Remarkable Complementary pi-pi Stacking Interactions
Chem. Commun. 2374 – 2375 (2002).

S. Groysman, I. Goldberg, M. Kol, E. Genizi and Z. Goldschmidt
>From THF to Furan: Sidearm Donor Exchange Causes a Major Difference in Activity of Group IV Amine Bis(phenolate) Polymerization Catalysts
Organometallics 22, 3013 – 3015 (2003).

S. Groysman, I. Goldberg, M. Kol, and Z. Goldschmidt
Pentabenzyltantalum: Straightforward Synthesis, X-ray Structure, and Application in the Synthesis of [O₂N]TaBn₃-Type and [O₃N]TaBn₂ -Type Complexes
Organometallics 22, 3793 – 3795 (2003).

S. Segal, I. Goldberg and M. Kol
Zirconium and Titanium Diamine Bis(phenolate) Catalysts for alpha-olefin Polymerization: From Atactic Oligomers to Ultra-high Molecular-Weight Isotactic Polymers
Organometallics 24, 200 – 202 (2005).

S. D. Bergman and M. Kol
pi-Stacking Induced NMR Spectrum Splitting in Enantiomerically Enriched Ru(II) Complexes: Evaluation of Enantiomeric Excess
Inorg. Chem. 44, 1647 – 1654 (2005) (the cover paper of issue No. 6).

A. Yeori, S. Groysman, I. Goldberg and M. Kol
Diastereomerically-Selective Enantiomerically-Pure Titanium Complexes of Chiral Salan Ligands: Synthesis, Structure, and Preliminary Activity Studies
Inorg. Chem. 44, 4466 – 4468 (2005).

S. Groysman, I. Goldberg, M. Kol, and Z. Goldschmidt
Vanadium(III) and Vanadium(V) Amine Tris(phenolate) Complexes
Inorg. Chem. 44, 5073 – 5080 (2005).

S. Groysman, Ekaterina Sergeeva, I. Goldberg, and M. Kol
Group IV Complexes of a Tetradentate Amine Mono(phenolate) Ligand: A Second Sidearm Donor Stabilizes Cationic Species
Inorg. Chem. 44, 8188 – 8190 (2005).

S. D. Bergman, R. Frantz, D. Gut, M. Kol and J. Lacour
Effective Chiral Recognition Among Ions in Polar Medium
Chem. Commun. 850 – 852 (2006).

S. Gendler, S. Segal, I. Goldberg, Z. Goldschmidt and M. Kol
Titanium and Zirconium Complexes of Dianionic and Trianionic Amine-Phenolate Type Ligands in Catalysis of Lactide Polymerization
Inorg. Chem. 45, 4783 – 4790 (2006).

A. Yeori, I. Goldberg, M. Shuster, and M. Kol
Diastereomerically-Specific Zirconium Complexes of Chiral Salan Ligands: Isospecific Polymerization of 1-Hexene and 4-Methyl-1-pentene and Cyclopolymerization of 1,5-Hexadiene
J. Am. Chem. Soc. 128, 13062 – 13063 (2006).

A. Cohen, A. Yeori, I. Goldberg, and M. Kol
Group 4 Complexes of a New [OSSO]-type Dianionic Ligand. Coordination Chemistry and Preliminary Polymerization Catalysis Studies
Inorg. Chem. 46, 8114 – 8116 (2007).

A. Yeori, I. Goldberg, and M. Kol
Cyclopolymerization of 1,5-Hexadiene by Enantiomerically-Pure Zirconium Salan Complexes. Polymer Optical Activity Reveals alpha-Olefin Face Preference
Macromolecules 40, 8521 – 8523 (2007).