A review of recent advances in electrochemical and photoelectrochemical late-stage functionalization classified by anodic oxidation, cathodic reduction, and paired electrolysis

• Nian Li,
• Ruzal Sitdikov,
• Ajit Prabhakar Kale,
• Joost Steverlynck,
• Bo Li and
• Magnus Rueping

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2500–2566, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.214

• into a carbon radical intermediate. The photocatalyst then oxidizes this intermediate, leading to the final product (Scheme 45). This approach underscores the significant potential of combining electro- and photocatalysis to achieve selective and mild transformations in organic synthesis, particularly

• disclosed a similar trifluoromethylation of arenes under photoelectrochemical reaction conditions but without the addition of a photocatalyst, using trifluoroacetic acid as the CF3 source (Scheme 47b) [71]. This alternative approach further underscores the versatility and applicability of

• bonds is challenging due to the risk of overoxidation. Recently, Lambert and coworkers explored the photoelectrochemical multiple oxygenation of C–H bonds using trisaminocyclopropenium (TAC+) as a photocatalyst [74]. This method enables the transformation of alkylarenes into the corresponding di- or

Visible-light-mediated flow protocol for Achmatowicz rearrangement

• Joachyutharayalu Oja,
• Sanjeev Kumar and
• Srihari Pabbaraja

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2493–2499, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.213

• ; photocatalyst; sunlight; Introduction The furan ring moiety is present in several natural products [1] and serves as a key precursor to 1,4-dicarbonyls [2], cyclopentanones [3], and carboxylic acids [4], in synthetic organic chemistry. Furfuryl alcohols, a family of 2-substituted furan molecules, are

• more efficient processes and potentially higher yields compared to the batch processes [23]. The first photoredox-mediated Achmatowicz reaction was reported by Gilmore et al. [13] in batch mode utilizing furfuryl alcohols with Ru(bpy)3Cl2·6H2O as photocatalyst, Na2S2O8 as an oxidant and H2O/DMSO/MeCN

• light and biomass-derived furfuryl alcohols as starting material making it more environmental benign. Results and Discussion A batch process Achmatowicz rearrangement mediated by less expensive rose bengal as photocatalyst (PC) was first reported by Vassilikogiannakis et al. [24] and was further

Photoredox-catalyzed intramolecular nucleophilic amidation of alkenes with β-lactams

• Valentina Giraldi,
• Giandomenico Magagnano,
• Daria Giacomini,
• Pier Giorgio Cozzi and
• Andrea Gualandi

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2461–2468, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.210

• reactions limit the utility of this approach. Herein, we report an intramolecular photoredox cyclization of alkenes with β-lactams in the presence of an acridinium photocatalyst. The approach uses an intramolecular nucleophilic addition of the β-lactam nitrogen atom to the radical cation photogenerated in

• the linked alkene moiety, followed by hydrogen transfer from the hydrogen atom transfer (HAT) catalyst. This process was used to successfully prepare 2-alkylated clavam derivatives. Keywords: β-lactam; acridinium photocatalyst; alkenes; amides; intramolecular radical reaction; photoredox catalysis

Factors influencing the performance of organocatalysts immobilised on solid supports: A review

• Zsuzsanna Fehér,
• Dóra Richter,
• Gyula Dargó and
• József Kupai

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2129–2142, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.183

• reactions in a less protic and less polar solvent. Attaching catalysts to solid supports also offers the potential for enhancing catalyst stability. Boyer and co-workers reported the use of silica nanoparticle-supported eosin Y 21 as a photocatalyst in reversible addition fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT

• ) photo-polymerisation reactions (Scheme 6) [24]. Previous endeavours utilising the homogeneous catalyst led to catalyst degradation or failure to remove the catalyst properly which resulted in the degradation of the polymer itself [66]. By employing the supported photocatalyst, reduced contamination was

Efficacy of radical reactions of isocyanides with heteroatom radicals in organic synthesis

• Akiya Ogawa and
• Yuki Yamamoto

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2114–2128, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.182

• metal complex or functional dye as a photocatalyst (PC) [19][20]. Recently, some important reviews summarize and discuss the use of method 3 in synthetic organic chemistry [21][22]; in contrast, there is little detailed and coherent literature on the overall research trends regarding the latest research

• methods, methods 1 and 3 require the addition of a radical initiator and a photocatalyst, respectively. In contrast, method 2 does not require any additive, although, if the heating or photoirradiation is performed by electricity, the combustion of fossil fuels may cause environmental pollution. However

• • can be generated by photoirradiation. On the other hand, the photoinduced homolysis of groups 13 and 14 interelement compounds with B–B, Si–Si, Sn–Sn bonds, etc. is generally impossible, because such E–E compounds have no isolated electronic pair. Therefore, the use of a photocatalyst (method 3) or

Harnessing the versatility of hydrazones through electrosynthetic oxidative transformations

• Aurélie Claraz

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1988–2004, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.175

• photocatalyst TAC+. The electrolysis was carried out at a constant cell potential of 1.5 V under white light irradiation. The carbonyl compound 144 was initially treated with tert-butyl carbazate (145) in acetonitrile in the presence of molecular sieves, followed by the addition of trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) to

• yield the unsubstituted hydrazone 146. Dropwise addition of this solution during the electrolysis to the anodic chamber containing the olefin 147, lithium perchlorate and the photocatalyst in acetonitrile delivered the desired olefin product 148. From a mechanistic point of view, the

Development of a flow photochemical process for a π-Lewis acidic metal-catalyzed cyclization/radical addition sequence: in situ-generated 2-benzopyrylium as photoredox catalyst and reactive intermediate

• Masahiro Terada,
• Zen Iwasaki,
• Ryohei Yazaki,
• Shigenobu Umemiya and
• Jun Kikuchi

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1973–1980, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.173

• subsequent photochemical radical addition [46][47][48][49][50][51][52][53][54], which affords 1H-isochromene derivatives 3 through three catalytic cycles (Scheme 1a) [55]: catalytic cycles I and II and a photoredox cycle of the photocatalyst [56][57] (see Supporting Information File 1 for the overall

Benzylic C(sp³)–H fluorination

• Alexander P. Atkins,
• Alice C. Dean and
• Alastair J. J. Lennox

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1527–1547, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.137

• pioneering report in 2013 that used photocatalyst 9-fluorenone under visible-light irradiation to generate a photoexcited aryl ketone, capable of HAT to promote benzylic fluorination with Selectfluor (Figure 23) [69]. The reaction tolerated an exceptional range of functional groups and enabled the

• fluorination of primary, secondary and tertiary benzylic substrates. The methodology was amenable to scale up, demonstrating the gram-scale synthesis of product 15 in 85% yield. The authors recognised the difficulty in sequential fluorination and noted that the use of a more electron-rich photocatalyst would

• be required to promote hydrogen abstraction. By changing the photocatalyst to xanthone and replacing Selectfluor with 3 equivalents of Selectfluor II, the authors afforded gem-difluoride products of primary and secondary benzylic substrates in high yields (Figure 24). In 2014, Lectka and co-workers

Generation of alkyl and acyl radicals by visible-light photoredox catalysis: direct activation of C–O bonds in organic transformations

• Mithu Roy,
• Bitan Sardar,
• Itu Mallick and
• Dipankar Srimani

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1348–1375, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.119

• catalysis In recent times, visible-light-mediated photoredox chemistry has evolved as a unique tool for various organic transformations. In contrast to traditional catalysis, the photochemical process uses an electron or energy transfer mechanism to form reactive intermediates. Typically, a photocatalyst is

• . Different photocatalysts, such as transition metal complexes [23][24], organic dyes [25], and semiconductors [26], can be employed for visible-light-induced chemical processes. The choice of photocatalyst depends on the specific requirements of the catalytic process, including the type of reaction, the

• . Appropriate selection of the phosphine reagent was the key to success in the process. Due to the lower oxidation potential, electron-rich PMe2Ph preferentially transferred a single electron to the excited state of the photocatalyst rather than the alkene, which was essential for obtaining the desired product

Mechanistic investigations of polyaza[7]helicene in photoredox and energy transfer catalysis

• Johannes Rocker,
• Till J. B. Zähringer,
• Matthias Schmitz,
• Till Opatz and
• Christoph Kerzig

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1236–1245, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.106

• triplet reactivity of the Aza-H photocatalyst through spectroscopic measurements. The careful characterization of the versatile Aza-H photochemistry might contribute to the development of a new class of photoactive catalysts that can compete with traditional metal complexes and well-known organic

• chromophores (as listed above). Results and Discussion A thorough understanding of the operation principles of a photocatalyst is essential for the development of improved catalysts and efficient photoreactions. To this end, the photochemical properties of photocatalysts such as metal complexes and organic

• /H2O (9:1). The low reduction potential of singlet-excited Aza-H (PC•+/PC* = –1.87 V vs SCE) led us to propose that the singlet-excited photocatalyst is oxidized by 4-cyanopyridine (4CP) (4CP/4CP•− = −1.81 V vs SCE) as the first step in this multicomponent reaction (Scheme 1, left). The oxidized

Carbonylative synthesis and functionalization of indoles

• Alex De Salvo,
• Raffaella Mancuso and
• Xiao-Feng Wu

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 973–1000, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.87

• that kind of chemicals [74]. The reaction was cheap because it took place by irradiation with green light (5 W) in the presence of eosin Y as photocatalyst, under 70 bar of CO, in CH3CN at room temperature (Scheme 41). In 2018, Wu et al. published two papers about the functionalization of indoles. In

SOMOphilic alkyne vs radical-polar crossover approaches: The full story of the azido-alkynylation of alkenes

• Julien Borrel and
• Jerome Waser

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 701–713, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.64

• under blue light irradiation afforded 4a in 17% NMR yield (Table 2, entry 1). The major byproduct formed during the transformation was identified as diazide 6. When a copper photocatalyst is involved, a lot of diazidation can be observed. We assumed it could be caused by the reaction of Ts-ABZ (3) with

• and 5). Surprisingly, 5a could be used as limiting reagent without impacting the reaction (Table 4, entry 6). Carrying out the azido-alkynylation at low or high photocatalyst loading had no impact (Table 4, entry 7). Considering the robustness of the reaction to fluctuation in stoichiometry

• mixture was obtained due to the presence of the photocatalyst. Further investigation revealed that Ru(bpy)3Cl2·6H2O is not soluble in DME (Scheme 2B). In contrast, when it is in the presence of alkynyl-BF3K it readily dissolves. The addition of a couple of water drops to a suspension of photocatalyst in

Mechanisms for radical reactions initiating from N-hydroxyphthalimide esters

• Carlos R. Azpilcueta-Nicolas and
• Jean-Philip Lumb

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 346–378, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.35

• absorption of light, an excited photocatalyst (*PC) engages in single-electron transfer (SET) with either donor (D) or acceptor (A) molecules (Scheme 3) [8][36]. Accordingly, a reductive quenching mechanism (path a) will operate when an excited photocatalyst effects the one-electron oxidation of a

• sacrificial donor giving rise to a strongly reducing catalytic species (PCn−1). On the other hand, in an oxidative quenching mechanism (path b) the excited photocatalyst directly induces the one-electron reduction of an acceptor substrate. Alternatively, the photocatalyst can mediate the formation of an

• type addition reactions (Scheme 4A). In 1991, Okada and co-workers reported the addition of alkyl radicals to α,β-unsaturated ketones, by subjecting NHPI esters to visible-light irradiation in the presence of the photocatalyst [Ru(bpy)3]Cl2 and the reductant 1-benzyl-1,4-dihydronicotinamide (BNAH) [37

Visible-light-induced radical cascade cyclization: a catalyst-free synthetic approach to trifluoromethylated heterocycles

• Chuan Yang,
• Wei Shi,
• Jian Tian,
• Lin Guo,
• Yating Zhao and
• Wujiong Xia

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 118–124, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.12

• that omitting the photocatalyst led to an even higher yield (Table 1, entry 2), but light irradiation was essential to the reaction (Table 1, entries 3 and 4). Initially, some bases were added into the reaction system considering a deprotonation process, but subsequent investigations indicated that

Optimizing reaction conditions for the light-driven hydrogen evolution in a loop photoreactor

• Pengcheng Li,
• Daniel Kowalczyk,
• Johannes Liessem,
• Mohamed M. Elnagar,
• Dariusz Mitoraj,
• Radim Beranek and
• Dirk Ziegenbalg

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 74–91, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.9

• evolution using a Pt-loaded polymeric carbon nitride photocatalyst under 365 nm irradiation in the presence of sacrificial reducing agents. The fluid flow pattern of the developed photoreactor was characterized experimentally and the photon flux incident to the loop photoreactor was measured by chemical

• actinometry. The system displayed exceptional stability, with operation sustained over 70 hours. A design of experiment (DOE) analysis was used to systematically investigate the influence of key parameters – photon flux, photocatalyst loading, stirring speed, and inert gas flow rate – on the hydrogen

• generation rate. Linear relationships were found between hydrogen evolution rate and photon flux as well as inert gas flow rate. Photocatalyst loading and stirring speed also showed linear correlations, but could not be correctly described by DOE analysis. Instead, linear single parameter correlations could

Using the phospha-Michael reaction for making phosphonium phenolate zwitterions

• Matthias R. Steiner,
• Max Schmallegger,
• Larissa Donner,
• Johann A. Hlina,
• Christoph Marschner,
• Judith Baumgartner and
• Christian Slugovc

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 41–51, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.6

• candidates as well. Ortho-hydroxy-substituted phosphines have been mainly used as chelating ligands for metal complexes until recently [16][17][18]. Further, ortho-hydroxy phosphines have been used for the synthesis of probes in metabolic labeling [19], as a photocatalyst in the defluoroalkylation of

Radical chemistry in polymer science: an overview and recent advances

• Zixiao Wang,
• Feichen Cui,
• Yang Sui and
• Jiajun Yan

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1580–1603, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.116

• necessary. MF-ROMP, also termed photo-ROMP, is a novel technique to polymerize cyclic olefins. It begins with the reductive quenching of an photoexcited photocatalyst (PC) at an enol ether initiator to produce a radical cation carrier [90]. Then, the carrier undergoes cyclic addition with a cyclic olefin

• photooxidation of polystyrene in the presence of FeCl3 as a radical source (Scheme 21a) [202]. A molar yield of 23% benzoyl small molecules was achieved. Reisner and co-workers employed a similar approach but using aromatic ketones as photocatalyst (Scheme 21b) [203]. Benzoic acid and other aromatic small

Non-noble metal-catalyzed cross-dehydrogenation coupling (CDC) involving ether α-C(sp³)–H to construct C–C bonds

• Hui Yu and
• Feng Xu

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1259–1288, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.94

• in functionalizing unactivated C(sp3)–H substrates, including ethers [109][110][111][112][113][114]. In 2018, Wang et al. reported the photocatalytic CDC α-alkylation of N-heteroarenes in acetone solution, using noble-metal Ir as a photocatalyst to induce the reaction (Scheme 41) [115]. Subsequently

• , noble metals have been extensively studied as photocatalysts for CDC reactions [116][117][118][119][120][121] and these methods fill the gap of traditional thermocatalytic CDC reactions. In 2017, Ryu et al. developed tetrabutylammonium decatungstate (TBADT, (n-Bu4N)4[W10O32] as a photocatalyst to

• this type of CDC reaction (Scheme 43b–e). Efficient CDC reactions could be achieved with 1 mol % of eosin Y in the absence of additional base or oxidizing agents. In this transformation, eosin Y may act as a direct hydrogen atom transfer photocatalyst (Scheme 43b) [124]. The CDC reaction between

Enabling artificial photosynthesis systems with molecular recycling: A review of photo- and electrochemical methods for regenerating organic sacrificial electron donors

• Grace A. Lowe

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1198–1215, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.88

• who used a similar photocatalyst to systematically study ferrocene derivatives as sacrificial donors [31]. The ferrocene derivatives reductively quenched the photosensitizer but could not accumulate as effectively as the BIH derivatives used by Gimeno et al. [29][31]. In contrast, Z-schemes that

• photocatalyst which re-reduced DcMFc and evolved oxygen. The same reaction scheme was used but in a modified H-cell (Figure 2B) [35]. Both catalysts were confined at the ITIES in two separate chambers and the redox mediator diffused between the two cells via the organic phase. The protons for hydrogen evolution

• migrated and diffused via the aqueous layer. The photoelectrochemical recycling was also studied in a system with one ITIES where the photocatalyst was immobilized and water oxidation was carried out at an electrode in the aqueous layer (Figure 2C). This electrode was connected to a counter electrode in

Selective and scalable oxygenation of heteroatoms using the elements of nature: air, water, and light

• Damiano Diprima,
• Hannes Gemoets,
• Stefano Bonciolini and
• Koen Van Aken

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1146–1154, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.82

• left out in future experiments) and no conversion was observed in the dark experiment. Surprisingly, after removal of the TiO2 photocatalyst from the reaction matrix, still an identical conversion of 10% was achieved. Additionally, replacing the inert atmosphere (argon) with oxygen had a drastic

• positive impact on the reaction outcome. By running the reaction in the presence of oxygen and in the absence of a photocatalyst, a quantitative conversion into the sulfoxide was obtained within 60 minutes in batch (Table 1, entry 1). To shed more light on what could be the absorbing species within the

• photocatalyst. Substrate scope with reaction times and isolated yields. 1 mmol (1 equiv) substrate was reacted in a 5 mL solution of CH3CN/H2O 8:2 (v:v). The reaction mixture was irradiated with a 365 nm 96 W lamp at a distance of 5 cm from the reactor. Oxygen was bubbled through the solution. a10 mL solution

Photoredox catalysis harvesting multiple photon or electrochemical energies

• Mattia Lepori,
• Simon Schmid and
• Joshua P. Barham

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1055–1145, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.81

• intermediates under mild conditions for both oxidative and reductive reactions and ii) to use photons as traceless reagents to drive reactions in a “greener” manner [1][2][3][4][5][6]. As depicted in Figure 1, for an oxidative PRC cycle, the excited photocatalyst (*PC) firstly undergoes oxidative quenching by

• SET with an electron acceptor (A), leading to PC•+ and A•−. The ground state photocatalyst is then regenerated by an SET reaction with an electron donor (D), affording also D•+. Both species described can be further involved in various organic transformations to form the target products (or byproducts

• generation of super-reductants [15] and by Wagenknecht in 2018 for the generation of super-oxidants [16]. Herein, initial excitation of the photocatalyst by a single photon is followed by reduction or oxidation by a sacrificial SET donor (e.g., Et3N [15]) or acceptor (e.g., SF6 [16]) to yield the catalyst

Photoredox catalysis enabling decarboxylative radical cyclization of γ,γ-dimethylallyltryptophan (DMAT) derivatives: formal synthesis of 6,7-secoagroclavine

• Alessio Regni,
• Francesca Bartoccini and
• Giovanni Piersanti

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 918–927, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.70

• photocatalyst. Keywords: decarboxylative cyclization; DMAT; ergot alkaloids; photoredox catalysis; radicals; Introduction Visible-light photoredox catalysis is rapidly changing the way organic chemists approach the design and synthesis of molecules by offering new synthetic disconnection opportunities that

• easily generate reactive open-shell radical species and/or intermediates. The substrate is consequently activated for bond cleavage, atom abstraction, or nucleophilic or electrophilic attack. After quenching, the oxidized or reduced photocatalyst regains or loses an electron to return to the starting

• of all ergot alkaloids, specifically the decarboxylative cyclization of DMAT, is still a puzzle even though a radical mechanism has been proposed (Figure 1a) [72][73]. Results and Discussion Herein, we propose that visible light irradiation of the cationic iridium photocatalyst Ir[dF(CF3)ppy]2(dtbbpy

Photocatalytic sequential C–H functionalization expediting acetoxymalonylation of imidazo heterocycles

• Deepak Singh,
• Shyamal Pramanik and
• Soumitra Maity

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 666–673, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.48

• investigation revealed a sequential sp2 and sp3 C–H activation, followed by functionalization driven by zinc acetate coupled with the photocatalyst PTH. A variety of imidazo[1,2-a]pyridines and related heterocycles were explored as substrates along with several active methylene reagents, all generating the

• boron complex (B2pin2), and using an expensive metal-based photocatalyst [fac-Ir(ppy)3] under inert atmosphere. We have recently demonstrated that aerial oxygen could be captured by alkyl radicals to install a keto-functionality onto alkenes in an organophotocatalytic way [23]. We aimed to extend this

• reaction was carried out between 1a and 2a in dry CH3CN as solvent under N2 atmosphere using 4CzIPN as the photocatalyst. Irradiating the reaction mixture for 10 h under blue LEDs (450 nm) led to the isolation of products 5 (54%) and 6 (28%) (Table 1, entry 1). However, the same reaction, under aerobic

Transition-metal-catalyzed domino reactions of strained bicyclic alkenes

• Austin Pounder,
• Eric Neufeld,
• Peter Myler and
• William Tam

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 487–540, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.38

• reactivity with a few examples failing to provide the desired product when 4-CzIPN was used as the photocatalyst; however, the products were isolated when [Ir(dF(CF3)ppy)2(bpy)]PF6 was used. Based on experimental observations and control reactions, the authors proposed the reaction begins with the

Combining the best of both worlds: radical-based divergent total synthesis

• Kyriaki Gennaiou,
• Antonios Kelesidis,
• Maria Kourgiantaki and
• Alexandros L. Zografos

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1–26, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.1

• lutidine base, 7 mol % organic photocatalyst 4CzIPN, 30 mol % NiBr2, and 30 mol % bpy provided 57% of 9. Intramolecular Friedel–Crafts reaction by Et2AlCl and HFIP complex led to 123, possessing the correct connectivity for the divergent synthesis of the family. Choreographically executed sequential

• ). Thus, upon irradiation, iridium polypyridyl photocatalyst allowed the oxidation of the phosphate complex 207 to radical cation 206, which can be readily trapped by TEMPO, and hence stabilizing the imine and allowing cyclization with the pendant amine to form the pyrroloindoline core 210 in 81% yield

• and 93% ee. The latter can serve as a common scaffold to access an array of pyrroloindoline natural products but also synthetic analogues (Scheme 17). Oxidation of 210 by a second iridium photocatalyst yields benzyl cation 213, which can undergo nucleophilic attack by tryptamine derivatives to allow