Chemical synthesis: A simple technique for highly functionalized compounds
Wednesday, September 25, 2013 - 08:00
in Physics & Chemistry
The addition of functional groups to certain unsaturated hydrocarbons, known as alkenes, is a crucial stage in the synthesis of various compounds, including many plastics. For these functionalization reactions to occur a carbon-hydrogen (C-H) bond must be activated, which is traditionally achieved using transition metal catalysts. However use of these catalysts has both economical and environmental drawbacks. Now researchers at Kanazawa University have demonstrated a technique that allows direct functionalization of alkenes without the need for metallic reagents, photolysis or extreme reaction conditions.