Dr. Ryan Felix

Associate Professor of Chemistry

Chemistry / Academic

Office:

IDEA Center 315

Mailbox:

61571

Phone:

903.813.2365

Education:

B.A., Oberlin College
Ph.D., University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Faculty Bio:

I have known that I wanted to be a college professor since I was an undergraduate at a small liberal arts college. While at Oberlin College I formed lasting connections with my professors and had several opportunities to develop my love for teaching. After graduating I went on to earn my Ph.D. in organic chemistry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. I worked in the lab of Michel Gagné, exploring the transformations of π-bonds using gold and platinum. At Austin College I combine my love of teaching and working with students with my passion for research. I was deeply impacted by the personal attention and mentoring I received from my professors as an undergrad student, so I relish the opportunity to develop those types of personal relationships with students.

Recent Courses:

• Chemistry 111 – General Chemistry I
• Chemistry 111L – General Chemistry Lab
• Chemistry 112 – General Chemistry II
• Chemistry 112L – General Chemistry Lab
• Chemistry 221 – Organic Chemistry I
• Chemistry 221L – Organic Chemistry Lab
• Chemistry 222 – Organic Chemistry II
• Chemistry 222L – Organic Chemistry Lab
• Chemistry 421 – Advanced Organic Chemistry

Research Interests:

Research in the Felix lab focuses on the synthesis, characterization, and applications of N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) borenium ions. Recent research has shown that borenium ions, which are tricoordinate boron compounds with a net positive charge, have unique applications as extremely reactive Lewis acids. This high reactivity could open up unique protocols for the utilization of typically unreactive chemical feedstocks or have applications in the synthesis of complex molecules with medicinal and pharmaceutical properties, such as synthetic hormones, many of which have polycyclic backbones.

Publications, CV, and Links:

Recent Student Presentations:

• Megan Daugherty*, Raj Patel*, Ryan J. Felix “Intermolecular Borylation of C-H Bonds Using Diamido Borenium Ions” Poster presentation at the 70th Southwest Regional Meeting of the American Chemical Society, Fort Worth, TX, November 19-22, 2014.
• Raj Patel*, Megan Daugherty*, Ryan J. Felix “Exploring the Preparation and Activation of N-Heterocyclic Carbene Boranes” Poster presentation at the 70th Southwest Regional Meeting of the American Chemical Society, Fort Worth, TX, November 19-22, 2014.
• Rohail Rahman*, Ryan J. Felix “Synthesis and Activation of N-Heterocyclic Carbene Boranes” Poster presentation at the 67th Southeast/71st Southewst Joint Regional Meeting of the American Chemical Society, Memphis, TN, Novermber 4-7, 2015.
• Kendall Heitmeier*, Ryan J. Felix “Synthesis of Polycyclic Compounds Using NHC-Borenium Ions” Poster presentation at the 67th Southeast/71st Southewst Joint Regional Meeting of the American Chemical Society, Memphis, TN, Novermber 4-7, 2015.

Paper Publications:

• Zheng, H.; Adduci, L. L.; Felix, R. J.; Gagné, M. R. “Gold-catalyzed Diastereoselective Cycloisomerization of Alkylidene-Cyclopropane-Bearing 1,6-Diynes” Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2014, 53(30), 7904-7907.
• Felix, R. J.; Munro-Leighton, C.; Gagné, M. R. “Electrophilic Pt(II) Complexes: Precision Instruments for the Initiation of Transformations Mediated by the Cation-Olefin Reaction” Acc. Chem. Res. 2014, 47(8), 2319-2331

• Zheng, H.; Felix, R. J.; Gagné, M. R. “Gold-Catalyzed Enantioselective Ring-Expanding Cycloisomerization of Cyclopropylidene Bearing 1,5-Enynes” Org. Lett. 2014, 16(8), 2272-2275.
• Felix, R. J.; Gutierrez, O.; Tantillo, D. J.; Gagné, M. R. “Gold(I)-Catalyzed Formation of Bicyclo[4.2.0]oct-1-enes” J. Org. Chem. 2013, 78(11), 5685-5690.
• Felix, R. J.; Weber, D.; Gutierrez, O.; Tantillo, D. J.; Gagné, M. R. “A Gold-Catalyzed Enantioselective Cope Rearrangement of Achiral 1,5-dienes” Nature Chem. 2012, 4(5), 405-409.

Poster Presentations Involving Undergraduates:

• “Exploring the Preparation and Activation of N-Heterocyclic Carbene Boranes” Patel, Raj; Daugherty, Megan; Felix, Ryan J. 70th Southwest Regional Meeting of the American Chemical Society, Fort Worth, TX, 2014.
• “Intermolecular Borylation of C-H Bonds using Diamido Borenium Ions” Daugerty, Megan; Patel, Raj; Felix, Ryan J. 70th Southwest Regional Meeting of the American Chemical Society, Fort Worth, TX, 2014.

Faculty Extras:

• Invited faculty sponsor to the Service Station’s Alternative Spring Break – 2014 and 2015.
• Faculty sponsor for the Archery Club
• Faculty participant in Wheel-Chair Basketball Fundraising opportunity (2013-2015)
• Faculty participant in the STAR Leadership Program
• Faculty participant in the Austin College ACCESS Program