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Conversion of greenhouse gases and other pollutants to fine chemicals is a global challenge. First-row-transition-metal catalysts show promise as cost-effective tools to combat environmental impacts by managing the carbon and nitrogen cycle. Nitrogen oxyanions are experiencing renewed interest for their use as N1 feedstocks.
Ring-forming reactions are at the heart of organic synthesis. Now, phenylene rings are synthesized from two isopropyl moieties on a gold surface. Resolving the intermediates of this (3+3) cycloaromatization reaction with atomic force microscopy offers mechanistic insight into the dimerization process.
‘Solar chemical’ production can be limited by the need for sacrificial reagents, metal-containing catalysts and low product values. Now, H2O2 is generated from H2O and air using lignin as a photocatalyst. Combining lignin with enzymatic catalysis enables selective oxyfunctionalization.
During the liquid-to-solid transition of alloys with very small concentrations of a minor component, surface patterns emerge that feature enrichment of the minor component. These periodic surface patterns may be beneficial for the use of precious metals in surface science applications.
The α-arylation of ketones is a powerful synthetic strategy for the construction of C–C bonds, but general metal-free methods are scarce. Now, a green-light-mediated photoredox protocol enables this transformation, giving access to a broad range of useful building blocks and value-added biorelevant products.
Predictably activating C–H and C–C bonds for the synthesis of new materials remains a challenge within the synthetic community. A ternary catalytic dance between radicals, metals and light may unlock this puzzle.
Late-stage tritiation with high selectivity, isotopic purity and functional-group tolerance is important for the radiolabelling of drug candidates or bioactive compounds. Now, a broadly applicable protocol using aryl thianthrenium salts allows for tritiation of complex molecules by hydrogenolysis via an intermediate cationic palladium complex.
Iterative synthesis can generalize, automate and democratize the molecule-making process. Now, by using a computer algorithm to scan the depths of chemical reactivity space, thousands of iterative ways to make small molecules are discovered.
