Owston's crystallography work included the determination of the structure of Zeise's salt,[5][6] the anion of which is shown at right. Zeise's salt, K[PtCl3(η2-C2H4)]·H2O, was reported in 1831[7] and was one of the first organometallic compounds ever discovered. However, the nature of the platinum to ethylene bond in the compound was not understood until the development of the Dewar–Chatt–Duncanson model in the 1950s.[8][9][10] The space-filling model from the Owston crystal structure clearly shows that it is an organometallic species as there is direct bonding between the platinum metal centre (in blue) and the two carbon atoms of the ethylene ligand (in black).
^Beck, Peter J. (1986). The International Politics of Antarctica. Routledge. pp. 119–120. ISBN 978-0-7099-3239-0.
^ a bBlack, M; Mais, R. H. B.; Owston, P. G. (1969). "The crystal and molecular structure of Zeise's salt, KPtCl3.C2H4.H2O". Acta Crystallogr. B. 25 (9): 1753–1759. doi:10.1107/S0567740869004699.
^ a bJarvis, J. A. J.; Kilbourn, B. T.; Owston, P. G. (1971). "A Re-determination of the Crystal and Molecular Structure of Zeise's salt, KPtCl3.C2H4.H2O". Acta Crystallogr. B. 27 (2): 366–372. doi:10.1107/S0567740871002231.
^Zeise, W. C. (1831). "Von der Wirkung zwischen Platinchlorid und Alkohol, und von den dabei entstehenden neuen Substanzen". Annalen der Physik (in German). 97 (4): 497–541. Bibcode:1831AnP....97..497Z. doi:10.1002/andp.18310970402.
^Mingos, D. Michael P. (2001). "A Historical Perspective on Dewar's Landmark Contribution to Organometallic Chemistry". J. Organomet. Chem.635 (1–2): 1–8. doi:10.1016/S0022-328X(01)01155-X.
^Winterton, N. (2002). "Some Notes on the Early Development of Models of Bonding in Olefin-Metal Complexes". In Leigh, G. J.; Winterton, N. (eds.). Modern Coordination Chemistry: The Legacy of Joseph Chatt. RSC Publishing. pp. 103–110. ISBN 978-0-85404-469-6.