Richard Dickinson Chambers. 16 March 1935 — 18 April 2019

Abstract

Richard (Dick) Chambers was one of the most creative and distinguished organofluorine chemists of his generation. He synthesized a range of perfluorinated heteroaromatic systems, including pentafluoropyridine and tetrafluoropyrimidine, by halogen exchange processes, and established their chemistry and associated reaction mechanisms. Notably, ‘mirror image’ negative Friedel–Crafts reactions led to perfluoroalkyl heteroaromatic derivatives that could be transformed into unusual valence bond isomers by irradiation. New ranges of stable, observable perfluorinated carbanions, alkenes and dienes were synthesized and their fundamental chemistry established. Dick was an excellent experimental scientist whose career was marked by his unique skill-set in being able to perform reactions at high pressure under vacuum, using γ-ray irradiation, photochemistry, continuous flow processes and a variety of fluorinating reagents. His research into the use of elemental fluorine gas, which established the key role of solvent in reaction control, established fluorine as a viable reagent for organic synthesis. Several of his new synthetic processes, including syntheses of perfluorocarbon iodides, highly fluorinated heteroaromatic derivatives and α-fluoro-β-ketoester systems, were adopted for scale-up by industry. But Dick was more than a talented and innovative scientist. He was also an outgoing and fun-loving man, who always made time to offer support, guidance and advice to all his colleagues, research group members and scores of scientific friends within the fluorine science community around the world. As a result, he forged strong personal bonds throughout his life and a legacy that has lasted through generations of chemists.