Hiyama received his Bachelor of Engineering (1969) and Master of Engineering (1971) from Kyoto University. He dropped out of the doctorate track in 1972, and subsequently started working as an assistant for Hitoshi Nozaki at Kyoto University. In 1975, he obtained his doctoral degree, and during 1975-1976 conducted postdoctoral research with Yoshito Kishi at Harvard University. In 1981, he started working at the Sagami Chemical Research Center, and became a principal investigator in 1983, and then chief laboratory manager in 1988.[1]
In 1992, he re-entered the world of academia at the Tokyo Institute of Technology as a professor of the Research Laboratory of Resources Utilization. He then returned to Kyoto University in 1997 as a professor of engineering, until 2010 when he transferred to Chuo University, where he currently holds tenure.
In his spare time, he enjoys listening to classical music. His favorite way of spending a holiday is “cleaning [his] small garden by picking out weeds one by one”, which is “good psychological training for a Buddhist priest”.[6]
The NHK reaction demonstrates high chemoselectivity towards aldehydes, as it tolerates a range of functional groups,[12] and has been used on the process scale.[13]
He has published over 400 papers and 25 books over the course of his career.[16]
Notable publications include:
Tamejiro Hiyama and Koichiro Oshima, “有機合成化学” [Organic Synthetic Chemistry], Tokyo Kagaku Dojin, 2012, ISBN978-4807907601
G. S. Zweifel, M. H. Nantz, Tamejiro Hiyama, “最新有機合成法 設計と戦略 – Modern Organic Synthesis: An Introduction”, Kagaku Dojin, 2009, ISBN978-4759811742
Tamejiro Hiyama, coedited by Kyoko Nozaki, “有機合成のための触媒反応103” [103 Catalytic Reactions for Organic Synthesis], Tokyo Kagaku Dojin, 2004, ISBN978-4807905867
Tamejiro Hiyama, “Organofluorine Compounds: Chemistry and Applications”, Springer, 2000, ISBN978-3-662-04164-2
Tamejiro Hiyama, coedited with Martin Oestreich, “Organosilicon Chemistry: Novel Approaches and Reactions”, Wiley-VCH, 2019, ISBN978-3-527-34453-6
Tamejiro Hiyama, coedited by Kyoko Nozaki, Yoshiaki Nakao, and Koji Nakano, “有機合成のための新触媒反応101” [101 New Catalytic Reactions for Organic Synthesis], Tokyo Kagaku Dojin, 20021, ISBN978-4-8079-2005-1
^Okude, Y.; Hirano, S.; Hiyama, T.; Nozaki, H. (1977). "Grignard-type carbonyl addition of allyl halides by means of chromous salt. A chemospecific synthesis of homoallyl alcohols". J. Am. Chem. Soc.99 (9): 3179–3181. doi:10.1021/ja00451a061.
^Takai, K.; Kimura, K.; Kuroda, T.; Hiyama, T.; Nozaki, H. (1983). "Selective grignard-type carbonyl addition of alkenyl halides mediated by chromium(II) chloride". Tetrahedron Letters. 24 (47): 5281–5284. doi:10.1016/S0040-4039(00)88417-8.
^Takai, K.; Tagashira, M.; Kuroda, T.; Oshima, K.; Utimoto, K.; Nozaki, H. (1986). "Reactions of alkenylchromium reagents prepared from alkenyl trifluoromethanesulfonates (triflates) with chromium(II) chloride under nickel catalysis". J. Am. Chem. Soc.108 (19): 6048–6050. doi:10.1021/ja00279a068. PMID22175376.
^Haolun, J.; Uenishi, J.; Christ, W.J.; Kishi, Y. (1986). "Catalytic effect of nickel(II) chloride and palladium(II) acetate on chromium(II)-mediated coupling reaction of iodo olefins with aldehydes". J. Am. Chem. Soc.108 (18): 5644–5646. doi:10.1021/ja00278a057.
^Hatanaka, Y.; Hiyama, T. (1988). "Cross-coupling of organosilanes with organic halides mediated by a palladium catalyst and tris(diethylamino) sulfonium difluorotrimethylsilicate". J. Org. Chem.53 (4): 918–920. doi:10.1021/jo00239a056.