| Citation | Martyn Poliakoff is distinguished for his work on the application of sophisticated infrared spectroscopic techniques to the detection and characterization of intermediates in organometallic chemistry; many of these significantly illuminate important catalytic processes. Based on this work he has pioneered the use of supercritical solvents for a wide range of applications: the synthesis and isolation of otherwise inaccessible complexes; the combination of matrix techniques and supercritical solvents for the study of photochemical and thermal reactions; the hydrogen?bonding of proton donors to organometallic centres; transition metal/noble gas interactions at room temperature. All of this work is characterized by the design of ingenious apparatus and the performance of highly original experiments; this is exemplified by the acoustic/photoacoustic/fast time?resolved infrared measurements to determine the physical properties of supercritical mixtures. This work led to him being nominated as the first EPSRC/Royal Academy of Engineering Clean Technology Fellow. Professor Poliakoff has been honoured by the Royal Society of Chemistry, which has awarded him both the Meldola Medal and the Tilden Medal. |