Biography
Biography: Shlomo Rozen
Abstract
During the first century after the isolation of fluorine, organic chemistry did not show great interest in this element despite the fact that numerous fluoro-organic compounds exhibited many desirable functions in pharmacology, material chemistry, agricultural science and much more. The main obstacle was the mythical fear from this element. The truth is that this fear is baseless in case of diluted F2. It is less toxic than chlorine and can’t spread to large areas since it will react with the surrounding to produce mainly harmless substances. We have started to use this element for very selective CH activation (no catalyst), for constructing CF2 and CF3 derivatives, for making fluorohydrins (especially 18[F]-FDG) and for constructing vicinal difluoro compounds. Elemental fluorine, however, was also used extensively for creating fluorine free materials which are practically impossible to make without the help of this element. Thus, for example, one can brominate any deactivated aromatic ring (no catalyst), iodinate benzene derivatives, produce methoxilium ion (electrophilic methoxylation) and may be most importantly to make the HOF•CH3CN complex which is the best oxygen transfer agent organic chemistry can offer today. This hypofluorous acid can, for example, turn oligothiophenes into their all S,S-dioxo derivatives (not possible with any other agent) which are important ingredients in the electronic industry based on organic compounds.