Graham Murphy
Biography
Given the prevalence of fluorine in pharmaceuticals (~20 percent), agrochemicals (~30 percent) and industrial chemicals (e.g., Teflon®), new methods of incorporating fluorine into organic scaffolds is of utmost importance. Graham Murphy has recently discovered a new approach to incorporating fluorine and chlorine into organic materials, using hypervalent iodine reagents as halogen transfer agents. This chemistry holds broad appeal to a wide community, and is continuously being expanded to include structural scaffolds of industrial, medicinal and societal importance.
Although lithium-ion batteries are the state-of-the-art rechargeable power source for portable electronics, achieving the same level of efficacy in large-scale systems (e.g., hybrid electric vehicles) requires fundamental innovation in materials. Graham Murphy’s experience in target-oriented synthesis and in fluorination methodologies is being applied to devising new, oxidatively stable organic electrolytes for use in large-scale rechargeable batteries.
Research Interests
Organic synthesis
Medicinal chemistry
Synthetic methodology
Hypervalent iodine
Halogenation
Synthetic Chemistry and Catalysis
Next Generation Energy Systems
Molecular Therapeutics and Theranostics
Drug Discovery, Design and Delivery
Increasingly Complex Water Challenges
Education
2006, PhD, Organic Synthesis, University of Alberta, Canada
2001, BSc, Chemistry, University of Victoria, Canada
Awards
2016, Early Researcher Award, Province of Ontario
2016, CNC-IUPAC Travel Award (for attending ICOS21, Bombay, India, December 2016)
2015, Tetrahedron Letters: Top 10 Reviewer for 2014
2014, Outstanding Performance Award, 2014
2014, Chem Club Periodic Table of Teaching Excellence Award 2014
2014, Tetrahedron Letters: Top 10 Reviewer for 2013
2014, Thieme Chemistry Journal Award
2013, Tetrahedron Letters: Top 10 Reviewer for 2012
2008-2010, NSERC Post-Doctoral Fellowship
2006-2007, JSPS Post-Doctoral Fellowship
2002-2007, Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research Graduate Studentship
2006, Oral Presentation Award, 89th CSC National Meeting
2004-2006, NSERC PGS D2
2004-2006, Walter H. Johns Graduate Fellowship
2004, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Inc. Graduate Scholarship
2002, Province of Alberta Graduate Scholarship
2001, University of Alberta Entrance Award
2001 and 1998, NSERC USRAs
Service
2011-present, Faculty Association, University of Waterloo, Chemistry Representative
2014-2015, Chemistry Awards Committee
2012-2014, Science Faculty Council, Chemistry Representative
2012, Chemistry/Science Strategic Planning Initiative, Co-operative Education
2012, Co-op Strategic Research Panel
Affiliations and Volunteer Work
Member, Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology
Teaching*
- CHEM 265 - Organic Chemistry 2
- Taught in 2021, 2022
- CHEM 266 - Basic Organic Chemistry 1
- Taught in 2020, 2021
- CHEM 360 - Organic Chemistry 3
- Taught in 2025
- CHEM 400 - Special Topics in Chemistry
- Taught in 2021
- CHEM 464 - Spectroscopy in Organic Chemistry
- Taught in 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2025
- CHEM 766 - Organic Spectroscopy
- Taught in 2022, 2024
* Only courses taught in the past 5 years are displayed.
Selected/Recent Publications
Zhensheng Zhao, Avery J. To and Dr. Graham K. Murphy*, "Difluorinative Ring Expansions of Benzo-Fused Carbocycles and Heterocycles are Achieved with p-(Difluoroiodo)toluene" Chem. Commun. 2019, 55, 14821.
Tristan Chidley, Islam Jameel, Shafa Rizwan, Philippe A. Peixoto, Dr. Laurent Pouységu, Dr. Stéphane Quideau,* Dr. W. Scott Hopkins* and Dr. Graham K. Murphy*, "Blue LED Irradiation of Iodonium Ylides Gives Diradical Intermediates for Efficient Metal-ˇfree Cyclopropanation with Alkenes" Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 2019, 58, 16959. (Cover Art).
Zhengsheng Zhao, Kevin C.Y. Ma, Dr. Claude Y. Legault* and Dr. Graham K. Murphy*, "Denitrogenative Hydrotrifluoromethylation of Benzaldehyde Hydrazones: Synthesis of (2,2,2-Trifluoroethyl)arenes" Chem. Eur. J., 2019, 25, 11240.
Zhengsheng Zhao, Islam Jameel and Graham K. Murphy*, "Vicinal Dichlorination of o-Vinylbiphenyls and the Synthesis of 9-(Arylmethyl)fluorenes via Tandem Friedel-Crafts Alkylations" Synthesis, 2019, 51, 2648.
Jason Tao and Graham K. Murphy*, "A Practical, Large-Scale Synthesis of p-(Difluoroiodo)toluene (p-TolIF2)" Synthesis, 2019, 51, 3055.
Patents
Kusuoku, Hiroshi; Shibuya, Yusuke; Ohashi, Sachihiro; Takagi, Yutaka; Okubo, Koji “Macrocarpals and ceramide formation promoters containing them” JP 2001055325, Feb 27, 2001.