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Staff profile

Overview

Prof. Jonathan W. Steed

Professor

Affiliations
AffiliationRoom numberTelephone
Professor in the Department of ChemistryCG103L+44 (0) 191 33 42085
Fellow of the Wolfson Research Institute for Health and Wellbeing +44 (0) 191 33 42085

Biography

Jonathan W. Steed was born in London, UK in 1969. He obtained his B.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees at University College London, working with Derek Tocher on organometallic and coordination chemistry. He graduated in 1993 winning the Ramsay Medal for his Ph.D. work. Between 1993 and 1995 he was a NATO postdoctoral fellow at the University of Alabama and University of Missouri, working with Jerry Atwood. In 1995 he was appointed as a Lecturer at King's College London. In 2004 he joined Durham University where he is currently Professor of Inorganic Chemistry. Professor Steed is co-author of the textbooks Supramolecular Chemistry (2000, 2009 & 2021) Core Concepts in Supramolecular Chemistry and Nanochemistry (2007) and around 350 research papers. He has edited the Encyclopaedia of Supramolecular Chemistry (2004), Organic Nanostructures (2008) and the 8-volume Supramolecular Chemistry from Molecules to Nanomaterials (2012). He is the recipient of the RSC Meldola Medal (1998), Durham's Vice Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Postgraduate Teaching (2006), the Bob Hay Lectureship (2008) and the RSC Corday-Morgan Prize (2010). He is Editor-in-Chief of the American Chemical Society journal Crystal Growth & Design. His interests are in crystallization, supramolecular gels and crystalline solids particularly pharmaceutical solids, co-crystals and hydrates. See personal web pages for full details.

Supramolecular Chemistry

Traditional molecular chemistry is largely concerned with the synthesis and study of molecules linked by covalent bonds between atoms. However, there is another entire area of chemistry, often impinging on nanometre scale assemblies, that transcends the chemistry of the covalent bond. This is termed Supramolecular Chemistry and it involves the study of systems bonded by a multitude of non-covalent interactions, particularly hydrogen bonding, π-π stacking, and metal-ligand dative bonds. Many of these kinds of interactions are difficult to control yet their importance and potential is mind blowing. For example, in biochemistry Nature relies heavily on just these interactions to fold proteins into their active conformations and, crucially, it is hydrogen bonding (base pairing) and π-π stacking that give DNA its characteristic double helical shape. Prof. Steed is the author of a definitive book on Supramolecular Chemistry.1

Molecular Sensors

Our work encompasses many aspects of supramolecular chemistry from crystallization and the nature of individual interactions (particularly in the solid state) to their incorporation and use in functioning molecular devices, particularly in applications such as the design and synthesis of molecular sensors for anions (e.g. environmental pollutants). To take just one example, a complex molecular device based on a calixarene (shown on the right) is capable of selectively recognising and binding a two halide anions entirely through non-covalent interactions (NH···X and CH···X hydrogen bonds) and photochemically signalling that binding via the appended pyrene units.2

Supramolecular Gels

Gels comprise a liquid trapped by a highly porous network of nanometre-scale fibres. As well as being fascinating because of their complex and emergent microstructure, the highly porous, locally ordered network in gels, coupled with their formation by spontaneous self-organization gives them tremendous technological possibilities, for example in the controlled formation of highly porous polymers and in the controlled crystallization of targeted pharmaceutical polymorphic forms, an area of particular interest for our group.5 Extremely simple, readily prepared bis(urea) building blocks give gels via a hierarchical series of self-organization steps strongly influenced (both positively and negatively) by ionic additives such as metal salts. The intrinsic ability of bis(ureas) to aggregate via NH∙∙∙O=C hydrogen bonded interactions is modulated and can be switched on and of by reversible coordination interactions to metal cations and hydrogen bonding to conjugate anions. Our group are particularly active in the design of targeted gels for pharmaceutical crystal form control. An SEM image of a dried gel showing chiral helical fibres derived from a chiral gelator is shown left.3-7

Crystallography and Solid Form

Facilities at Durham for both single crystal and powder work are internationally leading. The group is also particularly active in structure determination by neutron diffraction and students have the opportunity of taking part in visits to facilities at the ILL in Grenoble, France or the ISIS facility in the UK. Our single crystal neutron structure of the exotic H7O3+ ion trapped by two molecules called 'crown ethers' is shown right. We are particularly interested in low symmetry crystal structures with more than one molecule in the asymmetric unit7 and we maintain a dedicated web resource on this work (http://zprime.co.uk). The group are also expert in the study of polymorphism, particularly in pharmaceutical hydrates and in the use of novel methods such as gel phase crystal growth and mechanochemistry to influence solid form.

References
  1. J. W. Steed and J. L. Atwood, "Supramolecular Chemistry", 3rd Ed, J. Wiley & Sons: Chichester, 2021.
  2. “Induced Fit Inter-Anion Discrimination by Binding-Induced Excimer Formation”, M. H. Filby, S. J. Dickson, N. Zaccheroni, L. Prodi, S. Bonacchi, M. Montalti, M. J. Paterson, T. D. Humphries, C. Chiorboli, and J. W. Steed, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2008, 130, 4105-4113.
  3. "Anion-Tuning of Supramolecular Gel Properties", G. O. Lloyd and J. W. Steed, Nature Chem., 2009, 1, 437.
  4. "Metal- and Anion Binding Supramolecular Gels", M. M. Piepenbrock, G. O. Lloyd, N. Clarke and J. W. Steed, Chem. Rev., 2010, 110, 1960.
  5. "Anion-switchable supramolecular gels for controlling pharmaceutical crystal growth”, J. A. Foster, M.-O. M. Piepenbrock, G. O. Lloyd, N. Clarke, J. A. K. Howard and J. W. Steed, Nature Chem., 2010, 2, 1037–1043.
  6. “Halogen-Bonding-Triggered Supramolecular Gel Formation”, L. Meazza, J. A. Foster, K. Fucke, P. Metrangolo, G. Resnati and J. W. Steed, Nature Chem., 2013, 5, 42–47.
  7. “Blending gelators to tune gel properties and probe anion-induced disassembly”, J. A. Foster, R. M. Edkins, G. J. Cameron, N. Colgin, K. Fucke, S. Ridgeway, A. G. Crawford, T. B. Marder, A. Beeby, S. L. Cobb and J. W. Steed, Chem. Eur. J., 2014, 20, 279–291.
  8. “Packing Problems: High Z′ Crystal Structures and their Relationship to Cocrystals, Inclusion Compounds and Polymorphism,” K. M. Steed and J. W. Steed, Chem. Rev. 2015, 115, 2895-2933.

Research interests

  • Supramolecular Chemistry
  • Crystallography
  • Molecular Materials

Research groups

  • Physical Organic and Assembly
  • Soft Matter and Interfaces

Awarded Grants

  • 2017: SOFI CDT - Understanding Lactam-Active Ingredient Co-Phases(£46000.00 from Ashland Inc)
  • 2017: Solid State Reactivity of Dialkyne Dosimeters(£46000.00 from Ashland Inc)
  • 2016: Small Molecule Gels are targeted Crystallization Media for Solid Form Discovery(£33999.00 from Astra Zeneca UK Ltd)
  • 2014: Scientific Properties of Complex Knots(£155801.00 from Leverhulme Trust)
  • 2013: A Supramolecular Gel Control of Pharmaceutical Crystal Growth(£220882.14 from European Commission)
  • 2013: Solid State Chameleons: Chemical Transformations as Single Crystal Transitions(£155415.35 from European Commission)
  • 2012: Complementary Gel and Microemulsion Strategies for Pharmaceutical Solid Form Control(£688937.00 from Epsrc)
  • 2009: IS WATER STRUCTURE IMPORTANT?(£335175.00 from Epsrc)
  • 2007: CHEMICALLY TUNABLE SUPRAMOLECULAR GELS(£283569.00 from Epsrc)
  • 2007: SYMMETRY BREAKING IN MOLECULAR CRYSTAL STRUCTURES(£301169.00 from Epsrc)
  • 2006: PROBING METAL-MEDIATED HYDROGEN ACTIVATION(£100199.00 from The Leverhulme Trust)

Media Contacts

Available for media contact about:

  • Chemistry: Crystallography, crystal growth and crystal structure including polymorphism e.g. of pharmaceuticals
  • Structure, Property and Function: Crystallography, crystal growth and crystal structure including polymorphism e.g. of pharmaceuticals
  • Science & Technology: Crystallography, crystal growth and crystal structure including polymorphism e.g. of pharmaceuticals
  • Chemistry: Crystallography, crystal growth and crystal structure including polymorphism e.g. of pharmaceuticals
  • Chemistry: Inorganic chemistry
  • Structure, Property and Function: Inorganic chemistry
  • Chemistry: Inorganic chemistry
  • Chemistry: Nanoscale materials, particularly gels
  • Structure, Property and Function: Nanoscale materials, particularly gels
  • Chemistry: Nanoscale materials, particularly gels

Publications

Journal Article

Supervision students

Mr Alan Braschinsky

Research Postgraduate

Ms Amrita Chattopadhyay

Research Postgraduate

Miss Fatoumata Cisse

Research Postgraduate

Mr. Martin Screen

Research Postgraduate

Mr Ryan Kerrigan

Research Postgraduate