Catalytic Acylation Techniques in Organic Synthesis
Summary
Catalytic acylation lies at the heart of modern organic synthesis, enabling the selective installation of acyl groups onto nucleophilic centres such as alcohols, amines and thiols. By employing a range of catalysts—from transition-metal complexes to Brønsted acidic ionic liquids and heterogeneous solids—researchers have achieved significant reductions in reaction time, energy consumption and waste generation. The adoption of mild conditions and solvent-free protocols has further enhanced the sustainability profile of acylation processes, meeting industrial demands for green chemistry. Innovations in catalyst design have improved both substrate scope and chemoselectivity, allowing complex molecules bearing multiple reactive sites to be functionalised with precision. Practical applications span pharmaceutical development, agrochemicals and material science, where tailored esters, amides and thioesters serve as key intermediates or final products. Recent advances have also explored recyclable catalysts and continuous-flow methodologies, bridging the gap between laboratory research and large-scale production. By integrating mechanistic insights with scalable technology, catalytic acylation continues to evolve as a versatile platform for constructing carbon–heteroatom bonds in a resource-efficient manner.
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Catalytic Acylation Techniques in Organic Synthesis publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in catalytic acylation techniques in organic synthesis across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Acylation: Introduction of an acyl group (R–C=O) into a molecule, typically transforming alcohols into esters or amines into amides.
Heterogeneous catalyst: A solid catalyst that facilitates reaction of liquid or gaseous substrates and can be separated by filtration.
Brønsted acidic ionic liquid: A liquid salt possessing transferable protons, combining acidity and solvent properties to catalyse transformations.
Solvent-free protocol: A reaction carried out without additional solvent, often improving atom economy and reducing waste.
Isopropenyl acetate: A greener alternative to acetic anhydride that releases acetyl equivalents under mild conditions with reduced by-products.
References
- A Stoichiometric Solvent-Free Protocol for Acetylation Reactions. Frontiers in Chemistry (2022).
- Green heterogeneous catalysts for cleaner solvent-free production of acetates. Journal of Porous Materials (2022).
- Mild and Efficient Tunable Brønsted Acidic Ionic Liquid Catalyzed O-Acetylation and O-Trimethylsilylation with Trimethylsilyl Acetate (TMSOAc) and Hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS). Catalysts (2021).
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