Introduction to Coordination Chemistry

Metals overwhelmingly exist in nature as their cations, but these cations are rarely met 'naked' they are clothed in an array of other atoms, molecules or ions that involve coordinate covalent bonds (hence the name coordination compounds). These metal ion complexes are ubiquitous in nature, and central to an array of natural and synthetic reactions.Introduction to Coordination Chemistry examines and explains the way metals and molecules that bind as ligands interact, and the consequences of this assembly process. It describes the chemical and physical properties and behaviour of the complex assemblies that form, and applications that may arise as a result of these properties. Topics covered include:metals in molecules ligands: monodentates, polydentates and polynucleating species metal ions and ligands: the coordinate covalent bond and its implications shape: stereoisomers, spectroscopy, cystallography, and molecular mechanics stability and reactions: thermodynamic and kinetic stability, substitution., stereochemical change, oxidation/reduction, ligand-centred reactions, and isomerization properties: colour, magnetism, predictions using ligand field theory and molecular orbital theory metals in biology: metalloenzymes, synthetic biomolecules, and metallodrugs industrial roles for ligands and coordination complexes, including environmental considerations the future of coordination complexesCoordination complexes are an important but often hidden part of our world even part of us and what they do is probed in Introduction to Coordination Chemistry. It distills the essence of this important topic for undergraduate students, and for researchers in other fields interested in getting a general insight into coordination chemistry.

Professor Geoffrey Lawrance; Professor of Chemistry and Assistant Dean Research (Science & IT), The University of Newcastle, Australia
Professor Lawrance is the author or co-author of over 290 journal articles, review articles and book chapters in a career spanning three decades. He has contributed chapters to Encyclopaedia of Inorganic Chemistry II (Wiley, 2005), and Comprehensive Coordination Chemistry II (Elsevier, 2004).