Günther Wilke (23 February 1925 â 9 December 2016) was a German chemist who was influential in organometallic chemistry. He was the director of the Max Planck Institute for Coal Research (Max-Planck-Institut für Kohlenforschung) from 1967âÂÂ1992, succeeding Karl Ziegler in that post. During Wilke's era, the MPI made several discoveries and achieved some financial independence from patents and a gift from the Ziegler family. The institute continued as a center of excellence in organometallic chemistry.
Wilke's own area of interest focused on homogeneous catalysis by nickel complexes. His group discovered or developed several compounds including Ni(1,5-cyclooctadiene)<sub>2</sub>, Ni(allyl)<sub>2</sub>, Ni(C<sub>2</sub>H<sub>4</sub>)<sub>3</sub>. Some of these complexes are useful catalysts for the oligomerization of dienes. He died in 2016 at the age of 91.
See also: https://web.archive.org/web/20080529173702/http://www.mpi-muelheim.mpg.de/kofo/english/institut/geschichte_e.html