1971 - MSc - Chemistry Professor of Chemistry @ The Ohio State University, USA
Dr. T. V. RajanBabu is currently a Professor of Chemistry at The Ohio State University. Earlier he was a member of the Research Staff and a Research Fellow at DuPont Central Research and Development Laboratory.
Dr. RajanBabu received his M.Sc. degree in Chemistry from IIT Madras in 1971. Subsequently he received his Ph.D degree from The Ohio State University and then spent two years at Harvard University as post-doctoral Fellow with the Nobel Laureate Professor R. B. Woodward.
During his years at Dupont, Dr. RajanBabu was involved with a variety of projects dealing with applications of free-radical chemistry and of main-group and organometallic reagents in organic synthesis. Here, he co-discovered Group Transfer Polymerization, a technique that is used in the multimillion dollar desk-jet printer ink manufacturing industry. This concept also has found its way into textbooks on polymer science as one of the fundamental methodologies of polymerization. The work has received over 1000 citations, truly reflecting its high impact in this field of research.
For the past ten years, Dr. RajanBabu’s major research interests have been in area of asymmetric catalysis. Some of his seminal contributions in the area of C-C and C-H bond-forming reactions using simple feed-stocks like HCN, CO and/or simple olefins, have set the standard for catalytic synthesis of fine chemicals. Dr. RajanBabu has also developed a series of carbohydrate-based ligands for use in asymmetric catalysis, a simple but hitherto largely unrecognized possibility to exploit readily available sugar-coated metals for catalysis in organic and aqueous media. His other major interest is in the discovery of new protocols for the synthesis of densely functionalized carbocyclic and heterocyclic compounds from simple precursors.
He has over 80 original peer reviewed publications and 13 patents to his credit. He is a member of the editorial board of the Organic Reactions. He has delivered over 100 plenary and invited lectures.
In recognition of his outstanding contributions to the field of Chemistry, IIT Madras and its alumni are proud to confer on him this award.
