Alexandr Shafir

Dr. Alexandr Shafir is a researcher specializing in organic chemistry and catalysis. He holds a B.A. from Hunter College and a Ph.D. from UC Berkeley (2003), followed by postdoctoral work at MIT with Stephen L. Buchwald. He was awarded a Ramón y Cajal Research Fellowship at the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB) before becoming a Group Leader at ICIQ through the ICIQ Early Career Program (ICIQ-SCP) in 2012. His research focuses on transition metal catalysts for ethylene oligomerization, hypervalent iodine reagents, and C-H functionalization, with applications in selective olefin production and nanoparticle catalysis.

Education:

• B.A. in Chemistry, Hunter College, New York
• Ph.D. in Chemistry, UC Berkeley (2003), under Prof. John Arnold

Research Interests: Dr. Shafir's work emphasizes innovative catalytic systems for organic synthesis, particularly in oxidative coupling, C-H functionalization, and the design of transition metal catalysts. His group at ICIQ pioneered methods for selective ethylene conversion to α-olefins via non-polymerization mechanisms. He also investigates hypervalent iodine chemistry and dehydrogenative C-C coupling processes.

Awards:

• Ramón y Cajal Research Fellowship (Spain)

Lab & Projects: As Group Leader at ICIQ, he leads a team exploring catalytic strategies for sustainable chemical synthesis, with emphasis on mechanistic studies and industrial applications. His lab integrates spectroscopic techniques (IR, XAS, XRD) with synthetic chemistry to understand reaction pathways.