Biographical data

Biographical Data
Brook, Adrian Gibb Photo Credit: Unknown

Biographical Data

Brook, Adrian Gibb

Photo Credit: Unknown

Title	Ordinary Seaman (Officer Candidate UNTD) (RCNVR)
Official Number	(nk)

Birth	21/05/1924	Death	10/07/2013
Place	Toronto	Place	Toronto
Area	ON	Area	ON
Country	Canada	Country	Canada

Titles
Honours
Awards	FRSC. FCIC.Kipping Award in 1973, the CIC medal in 1985, the Killam Memoria1 Prize in 1994
Qualifications	PhD; DSc;

Biography
He obtained a Ph.D. degree in Organic Chemistry from the University of Toronto in 1950. After 3 years of teaching and post-doctoral studies abroad, he returned to the U of T to lecture, and to carry out research in the area of Organosilicon Chemistry. This work became known from numerous research papers and review articles, and particularly by his discovery of a chemical reaction which became known as the Brook Rearrangement, and from his synthesis of the first stable compounds to contain silicon-carbon double bonds. He was appointed Lecturer in Chemistry at the University of Saskatchewan (1950-51) and then was awarded first a Nuffield Fellowship at the Imperial College of Science and Technology, University of London (1951–53), with Professor R. P. Linstead, and then a Research Fellowship at Iowa State University with Professor Henry Gilman. In 1953, he returned to the University of Toronto as Lecturer in Chemistry, becoming Assistant Professor in 1956, Associate Professor in 1960, and Professor of Chemistry in 1962. During the 1968–74 period, Brook served as Associate Chairman, Acting Chairman, and Chairman of the Department of Chemistry. In 1967, he held a NRC Senior Research Fellowship at Princeton University. He also held Visiting Professorships at the University of Sussex (1974–75), Cambridge University (1982) and Indiana University (1988). In 1977, Brook was elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. He was Professor of Chemistry at the University of Toronto 1962. He was Chairman of the Department of Chemistry (U of T) 1971-1974.

Biography

He obtained a Ph.D. degree in Organic Chemistry from the University of Toronto in 1950. After 3 years of teaching and post-doctoral studies abroad, he returned to the U of T to lecture, and to carry out research in the area of Organosilicon Chemistry. This work became known from numerous research papers and review articles, and particularly by his discovery of a chemical reaction which became known as the Brook Rearrangement, and from his synthesis of the first stable compounds to contain silicon-carbon double bonds. He was appointed Lecturer in Chemistry at the University of Saskatchewan (1950-51) and then was awarded first a Nuffield Fellowship at the Imperial College of Science and Technology, University of London (1951–53), with Professor R. P. Linstead, and then a Research Fellowship at Iowa State University with Professor Henry Gilman. In 1953, he returned to the University of Toronto as Lecturer in Chemistry, becoming Assistant Professor in 1956, Associate Professor in 1960, and Professor of Chemistry in 1962. During the 1968–74 period, Brook served as Associate Chairman, Acting Chairman, and Chairman of the Department of Chemistry. In 1967, he held a NRC Senior Research Fellowship at Princeton University. He also held Visiting Professorships at the University of Sussex (1974–75), Cambridge University (1982) and Indiana University (1988). In 1977, Brook was elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. He was Professor of Chemistry at the University of Toronto 1962. He was Chairman of the Department of Chemistry (U of T) 1971-1974.

Military Service
He was appointed as an Ordinary Seaman (Officer Canadiate UNTD) RCNVR 1943. In 1943 he served in HMCS York for UNTD. (He was demobilized.)

Vessels Owned
Aircraft Flown
Named Features

Anecdotes
Bill Clearihue reports: "For a Chemist to have a Reaction named for him, is a high honour indeed. The “Brook Rearrangement” was so named in the 1970s and a Brook Rearrangement is defined as; "In organic chemistry, a rearrangement reaction in which an organosilyl group switches position with a hydroxyl proton over a carbon to oxygen covalent bond under the influence of a base. The reaction product is a silyl ether. The silyl substituents can be aliphatic (methyl) or aromatic (phenyl) and the alcohol is secondary or tertiary with aliphatic or aryl groups. The base is an amine, sodium hydroxide, an organolithium reagent or an alkali metal alloy such as sodium/potassium. When the reactant is a silylmethanol the reaction is a 1,2-brook rearrangement but rearrangements over larger carbon skeletons are also possible."

Anecdotes

Bill Clearihue reports: "For a Chemist to have a Reaction named for him, is a high honour indeed. The “Brook Rearrangement” was so named in the 1970s and a Brook Rearrangement is defined as; "In organic chemistry, a rearrangement reaction in which an organosilyl group switches position with a hydroxyl proton over a carbon to oxygen covalent bond under the influence of a base. The reaction product is a silyl ether. The silyl substituents can be aliphatic (methyl) or aromatic (phenyl) and the alcohol is secondary or tertiary with aliphatic or aryl groups. The base is an amine, sodium hydroxide, an organolithium reagent or an alkali metal alloy such as sodium/potassium. When the reactant is a silylmethanol the reaction is a 1,2-brook rearrangement but rearrangements over larger carbon skeletons are also possible."

References
Bill Clearihue (Nominal List UNTD); http://v1.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/Deaths.20130713.93324171/BDAStory/BDA/deaths; http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/cjc7811brook;
Last update
2014-11-02 00:00:00

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Biographical Data

Brook, Adrian Gibb