Horst Prinzbach (20 July 1931 in

Haslach im Kinzigtal Haslach im Kinzigtal (literally ''Haslach in the Kinzig (Rhine), Kinzig valley''; gsw, label=Low Alemannic German, Low Alemannic, Haaslä) is a small city in the Black Forest in the district Ortenaukreis, Baden-Württemberg in south-western Germa ...

– 18 September 2012 in Freiburg im Breisgau) was a German chemist and professor emeritus. Prinzbach studied chemistry at the

University of Freiburg The University of Freiburg (colloquially german: Uni Freiburg), officially the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg (german: Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg), is a public research university located in Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemb ...

and received his PhD under Arthur Lüttringhaus. He joined

William von Eggers Doering William von Eggers Doering (June 22, 1917 – January 3, 2011) was the Mallinckrodt Professor of Chemistry at Harvard University. Before Harvard, he taught at Columbia (1942–1952) and Yale (1952–1968). Doering was born in Fort Worth, Texa ...

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

for postdoctoral work. In 1962 he completed his habilitation at Freiburg with a dissertation on sesquifulvalenes. In 1965 he became a professor of

organic chemistry Organic chemistry is a subdiscipline within chemistry involving the scientific study of the structure, properties, and reactions of organic compounds and organic materials, i.e., matter in its various forms that contain carbon atoms.Clayden, ...

at the

University of Lausanne The University of Lausanne (UNIL; french: links=no, Université de Lausanne) in Lausanne, Switzerland was founded in 1537 as a school of Protestant theology, before being made a university in 1890. The university is the second oldest in Switzer ...

, Switzerland, and in 1969 he became a full professor in organic chemistry at Freiburg.

Main research activities

Of his many research interests in organic chemistry, including

photochemistry Photochemistry is the branch of chemistry concerned with the chemical effects of light. Generally, this term is used to describe a chemical reaction caused by absorption of ultraviolet (wavelength from 100 to 400 nm), visible light (400– ...

with unusual chromophores, synthesis of new carba-/hetera cages, radical cations, dications, total synthesis of aminoglycosid antibiotics, and enzymes, Prinzbach was probably best known for the

pagodane Pagodane is an organic compound with formula whose carbon skeleton was said to resemble a pagoda, hence the name. It is a polycyclic hydrocarbon whose molecule has the ''D''2''h'' point symmetry group. The compound is a highly crystalline solid ...

route towards

dodecahedrane Dodecahedrane is a chemical compound, a hydrocarbon with formula , whose carbon atoms are arranged as the vertices (corners) of a regular dodecahedron. Each carbon is bound to three neighbouring carbon atoms and to a hydrogen atom. This compound ...

. In the course of his research, the phenomenon of

σ-bishomoaromaticity Horst Prinzbach (20 July 1931 in Haslach im Kinzigtal – 18 September 2012 in Freiburg im Breisgau) was a German chemist and professor emeritus. Prinzbach studied chemistry at the University of Freiburg and received his PhD under Arthur L� ...

was discovered as an extreme case of chemical bonding. The final landmark the development of dodecahedrane chemistry over many years was the preparation and characterisation of C20 fullerene in the gas phase based on bromination-elimination reactions of dodecahedrane.

σ-Bishomoaromaticity

σ-Bishomoaromaticity is an extreme case of the chemical bond and the

aromaticity In chemistry, aromaticity is a chemical property of cyclic ( ring-shaped), ''typically'' planar (flat) molecular structures with pi bonds in resonance (those containing delocalized electrons) that gives increased stability compared to satur ...

. It was found by the Prinzbach when they synthesized dodecahedrane via the

Pagodane Pagodane is an organic compound with formula whose carbon skeleton was said to resemble a pagoda, hence the name. It is a polycyclic hydrocarbon whose molecule has the ''D''2''h'' point symmetry group. The compound is a highly crystalline solid ...

routeR. Herges, P. v. R. Schleyer, M. Schindler, W.-D. Fessner J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1991, 113, 3649.

Honors

* Adolf-von-Baeyer-Denkmünze (

Adolf von Baeyer Johann Friedrich Wilhelm Adolf von Baeyer (; 31 October 1835 – 20 August 1917) was a German chemist who synthesised indigo and developed a nomenclature for cyclic compounds (that was subsequently extended and adopted as part of the IUPAC org ...

Medal'') of the German Chemical Society

Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker The German Chemical Society (German: ', GDCh) is a learned society and professional association founded in 1949 to represent the interests of German chemists in local, national and international contexts. GDCh "brings together people working in che ...

(1989)

References

External links

Homepage of Horst Prinzbach at Universität of Freiburg
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prinzbach, Horst 1931 births 2012 deaths People from Haslach im Kinzigtal People from the Republic of Baden 20th-century German chemists University of Freiburg faculty