J. Henrique Teles is a senior R&D manager and head of the research group on Oxidations and Phosgene Chemistry at BASF's central research in Ludwigshafen, Germany. He obtained a MSc in chemistry and chemical Engineering at the Instituto Superior Técnico of the University of Lisbon in Portugal, and PhD at the Justus-Liebig-University in Giessen, Germany under the supervision of Prof. Günther Maier. He did a postdoc at Harvard University, USA. After his return to Germany, he first worked as a research fellow at the University of Giessen, and since 2001, he heads the research group on oxidation and phosgene chemistry at BASF. He has developed many important industrial processes including the propylene oxidation HPPO process with 1 million tons/year capacity or a greener oxidation process using N2O as the oxidant. He is also an author of the first report of the gold(I) catalyzed nucleophilic addition to alkynes that started the "gold rush" in chemistry. For his work, he has been awarded by many awards.
