John Christian Bailar Jr. (May 27, 1904 – October 17, 1991) was a professor of

inorganic chemistry Inorganic chemistry deals with synthesis and behavior of inorganic and organometallic compounds. This field covers chemical compounds that are not carbon-based, which are the subjects of organic chemistry. The distinction between the two disci ...

at the

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Univ ...

. He received his B.A. at the

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, University of Colorado Denver, and the University of Co ...

and his Ph.D. at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. His father was a member of the chemistry staff of the Colorado School of Mines. At the University of Illinois, he developed an active research program on

coordination chemistry A coordination complex consists of a central atom or ion, which is usually metallic and is called the ''coordination centre'', and a surrounding array of bound molecules or ions, that are in turn known as ''ligands'' or complexing agents. Many ...

. He is referred to as the “Father of Coordination Chemistry in the United States,” as prior to his time, this area of chemistry received little attention in the U.S. The

Bailar twist The Bailar twist is a mechanism proposed for the racemization of octahedral complexes containing three bidentate chelate rings. Such complexes typically adopt an octahedral molecular geometry, in which case they possess helical chirality. One pa ...

in coordination compounds is named after him. He helped found the book series ''

Inorganic Syntheses ''Inorganic Syntheses'' is a book series which aims to publish "detailed and foolproof" procedures for the synthesis of inorganic compounds.Inorganic Chemistry Inorganic chemistry deals with synthesis and behavior of inorganic and organometallic compounds. This field covers chemical compounds that are not carbon-based, which are the subjects of organic chemistry. The distinction between the two disci ...

''. His work was widely recognized culminating in the award of the

Priestley Medal The Priestley Medal is the highest honor conferred by the American Chemical Society (ACS) and is awarded for distinguished service in the field of chemistry. Established in 1922, the award is named after Joseph Priestley, the discoverer of oxygen ...

from the

American Chemical Society The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 155,000 members at all d ...

, an organization of which he was also president. He was the father of two sons, one of whom was John Christian Bailar III.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bailar, John C. 20th-century American chemists 1904 births 1991 deaths University of Colorado alumni University of Michigan College of Literature, Science, and the Arts alumni University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign faculty Presidents of the American Chemical Society Inorganic chemists