Annexure-7
Department of Chemistry of Jahangirnagar University
and its Research Activities
The Department of chemistry was established in 1971 with Prof. M. Mahbubul Huqe as Head of
the Department; its academic session started functioning in 1972 just after the war of liberation.
Over the last 41 years, this department has gradually emerged as a major seat of teaching,
learning and research in the country. The department of chemistry now offers courses in
inorganic, organic, physical and environmental chemistry for B.Sc., (Hons.), M. S. and Ph.D.
degrees to students. At present there are 36 teachers in the department of which 25 have their
Ph.D.s and there are 400 students pursuing undergraduate and post-graduate studies in the
department. The research activities in the department are being carried out in all the sections
namely inorganic, organic, physical and environmental chemistry.
The Inorganic Section is devoted to research in the broad field of organometallic, cluster,
coordination and liquid crystal chemistry. The country’s first transition metal organometallic
research group was organized by Prof. Dr. Syed Safiullah. The group has done commendable
research on synthesis and structural determination of organometallic compounds, reactions of the
coordinated ligands, trapping of transient organic species by metal coordination and first row
transition metal cluster with recognition behaviour. His group is also engaged in synthesis of
some titanium compounds having anticancer activities.
Professor Dr. Kazi Ali Azam’s group is doing excellent work on the Os, Ru, Mn and Re cluster
with heterocyclic nitrogen and sulphur ligand and also on the thiourea complexes. Professor Dr.
Shariff Enamul Kabir is doing work on alkane activation (C-H), P-H, N-H & S-H activation with
particular emphasis on modeling HDN and HDS processes on trimetallic surfaces of osmium,
ruthenium and mixed metals. His research interest also lies in the removal of molecular nitrogen
from complexes as NH3 and insertion in small molecules at sites of dimeric iron compounds. He
has already established collaborative research protocols with Prof. Edward Rosenberg, The
University of Montana (USA), Dr. Ebbe Nordlander, Lund University (Sweden), Dr. Graeme
Hogarth and Prof. Derek A. Tocker, University College London (UK), Dr. Sergey V. Lindeman,
Marquette University (USA) and Prof. Herbert W. Roesky, Georg-August University of
Goettingen (Germany). Prof. K. Kundu has formed his research group on tellurium to various
transition metal bonded complexes and palladium complexes and has achieved some interesting
synthesis and structural characterization. Prof. Dr. Jasim Uddin Ahmad is doing his research on
coordination complexes of transition metals with emphasis on S and N donor ligands. Prof. Dr.
Md. Manzurul Karim is working on cluster, while Prof. Dr. Md. Nurul Abser has now set up a
successful research group on liquid crystals.
The Organic Section of the department is now carrying out research on natural products,
photochemistry, polymer chemistry, organic and organometallic synthesis, sonochemistry,
synthesis of heterocyclic compounds with emphasis on anticancer activity and synthesis of
biologically active organic compounds. Prof. Dr. Md. Abul Hashem has done important work on
synthesis of small ring compounds, inverse type hetero Diels-Alder reaction, Enantioselective
synthesis using chiral catalyst, synthesis involving polymer bound electrophilic reagents and on
the isolation and synthesis of small ring compounds, inverse type hetero Diels-Alder reaction,
Enantioselective synthesis using chiral catalyst, synthesis involving polymer-bound electrophilic
reagents and on the isolation and synthesis of some natural products like essential oils, alkaloids
and sterols. Prof. Hashem has collaboration with the universities of Germany, Taiwan and Japan.
Prof. Dr. Md. Abdul Hai is independently working on alkaloids and flavanoids. Prof. Dr. Md.
Rabiul Islam is working on adamantane derivatives, antibiotics, heterocyclic compounds like
isatin 1,3,4-thiadiazoline, having anticancer activities. Prof. Islam has collaboration with Prof.
Dr. Helmut Duddeck, Hannover University (Germany). Prof. Dr. Md. Elias Molla has also been
active in the synthesis of heterocycles having biological activities. Prof. Dr. Khurshida Khayer,
Prof. Dr. Koushik Saha and Dr. Mohammad Mamun Hossain are also engaged in synthetic as
well as on natural products.
The Physical Chemistry group is carrying out research on chemical kinetics, physio-chemical
studies of metal drug interactions, solid phase extraction of metal, metal speciation,
photochemistry, ion-solvent interaction and metal drug absorption on biopolymer. Prof. Dr.
Mahbub Kabir is working on the collisional behavior of electronically excited Group IV atoms
while Prof. Dr. M. Enamullah is working on complexation reactions in solution with emphasis
on spin-crossover behavior. Prof. Dr. Nurun Nahar is working on trace metal speciation and
material science. Prof. Dr. Tapan Kumar Saha is working on polymer and biophysical chemistry.
Prof. Saha has already established collaborative research protocols with Prof. Y. Fukumori, Kobe
Gakuin University (Japan), Prof. Debbie C. Crans, Clorado State University (USA) and Prof.
France Meyer, Gottingen University (Germany). Prof. Dr. D. M. Shafiqul Islam is working on
photochemistry. Prof. Dr. Md. Abdullah Khan is working on chemical thermodyanics and
solution chemistry.
Environmental Section of the department is carrying out significant research for the last 25 years.
During the early eighties at the invitation of the International Carbon Centre of Hamburg
University and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to monitor the Ganges and
Brahmaputra for the transport of Carbon and Minerals as part of the Global program, a strong
research team was formed by M. I. Choudhury of Geography Department and S. Safiullah of
Chemistry Department. The group has since done seminal work on the flux of carbon and related
environmental parameters in the Ganges and Brahmaputra and on the amino acid and
carbohydrate profiles of the rivers. As a continuation of the above work, research conducted on
amino acids and strontium isotopes in the Bay of Bengal in collaboration with Dr. T. Ishizuka of
Japan. All these work have important implications to Greenhouse Effect. With the establishment
of Environmental research laboratories in the mid eighties by S. Safiullah and J. U. Ahmad, work
is being done on the monitoring of lead and other harmful metal in environment, humic and
fulvic acids and slow release fertilizer and photo catalytic decomposition of organic pollutants by
titanium dioxide and preparation of low cost water purification kit by using chitosan from
crustacean shell. Prof. S. Safiullah has carried out significant work on Arsenic Pollution and its
mitigation. He has recently been working on the industrial effluent treatment Prof. Jasim Uddin
Ahmad has on-going international collaboration on Acid Rain and Environmental Education
research. He has been carrying out significant research on aquatic pollution both on river basing
and estuarine regions.
The momentum of research activity of this department can very well be judged from the number
of research publications till to date. A total of about 1000 papers have been published during this
time by the researchers of this department in national and international journals. The teachers of
the department received several grants from the Ministry of Science and Technology. An NMR
spectrometer was procured under one such grants. Several members of the academic staff of the
department have been recognized nationally and internationally for their diligence and creativity
in research work. Prof. Safiullah received the Third World Academy of Science Prize (Senior
group) in 1986. Prof. Dr. Jasim Uddin Ahmad has been awarded the national award, Ekushey
Padak for his contribution to education in 2006. Prof. Dr. Shariff Enamul Kabir got Bangladesh
University Grants Commission, (UGC) prize in 1991. Prof. Dr. Md. Elias Molla was awarded
H.P. Roy Gold Medal of Dhaka University of 1987. Prof. Dr. Syed Safiullah was elected Fellow
of the Royal Society of Chemistry, FRSC in 1988. Prof. Dr. Kazi Ali Azam, Prof. Dr. Kalipada
Kundu, Prof. Dr. Jasim Uddin Ahmad and Prof. Dr. Shariff E. Kabir have also been elected
Fellow of Royal Society of Chemistry in 1996. Prof. S. E. Kabir was elected a Fellow of the
Bangladesh Academy of Sciences. Prof. Dr. Kalipada Kundu and Prof. Dr. Md. Rabiul Islam
have contributed a lot in chemical education curricula by writing several text books in higher
secondary, undergraduate and graduate levels. Prof. Dr. Syed Safiullah has published a
significant number of books on science and scientific research. Prof. Dr. Jasim Uddin Ahmad has
published a few books on environment related issues.