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Primary alcohols are known for their broad application in life sciences and the chemical industry. Now, Beller and colleagues present a regioselective, iron-catalysed hydrogenation of aliphatic and aromatic epoxides as a general route to primary alcohols under mild conditions

An efficient, low-temperature, aqueous-phase method of producing hydrogen gas from methanol using ruthenium complexes is described, which could make the transport of hydrogen — and hence its use for clean-energy generation — feasible.

Catalytic hydrogenation of amides is a pivotal chemical transformation for both research labs and chemical production in industry. Here, the authors comprehensively review this topic by including state-of-art homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysts that can hydrogenate amides and related compounds.

Synthesis of primary amines via operationally simple, inexpensive and environmentally friendly methodologies has high impact in industrial settings. Here, the authors show a reductive amination process involving a ruthenium catalyst, aldehydes/ketones, ammonia, and hydrogen that displays a remarkable scope of primary amine products.

The selective reduction of arenes is important in organic synthesis and also valorization of biomass. Here, the authors report the use of ruthenium-based nanoparticles, which display high activity in arene reduction and preferentially hydrogenate aromatic rings rather than cleaving etheric C-O bonds.

The carbonylation of alkenes is tremendously important industrial process, but many substrates are highly challenging. Here the authors report a highly active catalytic system for the alkoxycarbonylation of alkenes that is also general across the range of alkene substitution patterns.

Hydrogen borrowing is an attractive method for C-N bond formation - avoiding multiple alkylation products and reducing waste - but often is carried out with noble metals. Here the authors show that a manganese catalyst allows the selective N-alkylation of amines with alcohols.

The conversion of alkenes to esters is performed on a large scale worldwide, but relies on the use of toxic and flammable carbon monoxide. Here, the authors show a catalytic system where carbon dioxide—normally unreactive, but cheap and abundant—can be employed instead.

Conversion of one-carbon feedstocks to more complex structures is vital for the production of bulk chemicals. Here, the authors report a highly selective method for the conversion of carbon monoxide to ethylene glycol by means of an oxamide intermediate.

Aromatic and aliphatic nitriles are important precursors required for many important compounds. Here, the authors report the relatively environmentally benign synthesis of a range of nitriles from alcohols treated with ammonia and oxygen in the presence of graphene supported non-noble metal oxide catalysts.

Synthesis of fluorinated organic molecules is of high interest for agrochemistry and pharmaceutics, but efficient and general reagents for introducing -CF₂- groups are lacking. Here, the authors report the synthesis of 3,3-difluoropropen-1-yl ammonium salts as stable and scalable gem-difluoromethylation reagents, which react with a range of nucleophiles under mild conditions and high regioselectivity.

In order to use early, non-noble transition metals in homogeneous catalysis, complex ligands are typically needed, offsetting the benefits of inexpensive metals. Here the authors show that a simple manganese complex can be used in the hydrogenation of N-heteroarenes, without the need for additional ligands.

Synthetic methods aiming at minimizing reaction steps while increasing molecular complexity are highly sought after by organic chemists. Here, the authors report two cascade procedures combining nucleophilic substitution, palladium-catalyzed Heck and C–H activation reactions for the synthesis of spiro-fused heterocycles.

N-methylated amines display high biological activity in living organisms. Here, the authors show the convenient synthesis of a wide range of biologically relevant N-methylamines via reduction of nitrobenzenes using a recyclable iron catalyst and paraformaldehyde without additional hydrogen pressure.

This study demonstrates a sustainable photocatalytic route for the production of ethylene glycol and H₂ using methyl tert-butyl ether as the substrate, offering a greener alternative to energy-intensive, petroleum-based industrial processes.

Benzamides are widely found structural motifs, but their syntheses are largely derived from petrochemical-based feedstocks. Here the authors present the concept of “lignin to amides” with a one-pot, multi-step oxidation process utilizing molecular oxygen and a 3d-metal catalyst with highly dispersed and stable cobalt species (Co-SACs), supported on nitrogen-doped carbon in water as solvent.

Deuterated amines play a crucial role as building blocks in drug synthesis and in identifying metabolites of novel pharmaceuticals. This study introduces a dual-functional phosphorus-doped iron single-atom catalyst that efficiently enables both reductive amination and deuteration in a one-pot process, utilizing H₂ as the reducing agent and cost-effective D₂O as the deuterium source.

The area of catalytic dehydrogenation is largely dominated using precious metals. Here the authors introduce a new class of more affordable Co-based catalysts, where highly dispersed single-metal sites work synergistically with small, well-defined nanoparticles to enable efficient formic acid dehydrogenation

Liquid (organic) hydrogen carriers form a toolbox for the storage and transport of green hydrogen but organic salts have been scarcely investigated. Here, the authors present a potassium formate/potassium bicarbonate hydrogen storage and release energy system, that is applicable and shows stability over months.

A method for the selective deuteration of anilines, indoles, phenols and heterocyclic compounds, including natural products and other bioactive molecules, has been developed. The nanostructured iron catalyst that underpins this process is prepared by combining cellulose with iron salts and has been used for the preparation of deuterated compounds on up to a kilogram scale.

The selective synthesis of non-symmetrical diamides and amido-esters is a challenge. Now a Pd-catalysed dicarbonylation method is reported that generates non-symmetrical diamides and amido-esters through diamino- and amino-alkoxy carbonylations of propargylic acetates using two different nucleophiles. Mechanistic studies reveal that the process occurs through a sequential carbonylation process.

The synthesis of nitrogen-containing heterocycles from biomass is scarcely known. Here, the authors report a strategy for the N-heterocyclic piperidines synthesis by one-pot amination of the bio-based furfural utilizing a Ru₁Co_NP/HAP surface single-atom alloy catalyst.

Hydrogen carriers play an important role in the hydrogen economy. Now, methyl formate is proposed as a suitable chemical hydrogen source for a carbon-neutral hydrogen energy cycle, and faster catalytic hydrogen production rates are achieved compared with those from the widely investigated formic acid and methanol.

The search for new carbon-based hydrogen storage materials attracts scientists from various disciplines. Now, carbon-neutral hydrogen storage-release is reported based on dual-functional roles of formamides and uses non-noble, Fe-based catalyst.

The synthesis of amides is a key technology for the preparation of fine and bulk chemicals in industry. Here, the authors present the reductive amidation of esters with nitro compounds under additivesfree conditions as a robust methodology for amide synthesis.

The selective formation of Markovnikov products in carbonylation reactions is a challenging problem, especially from unactivated substrates. Now, a highly Markovnikov-selective alkoxycarbonylation reaction is described using a catalyst system based on palladium and the cataCXium ligand POMeCy(Ph). The resulting branched carboxylates are important structural components in many flavour and fragrance products.

Nitrile reduction is a simple method for the generation of amines, though successful catalysts use expensive precious metals such as ruthenium. Here, the authors use an iron complex, demonstrating its application in the hydrogenation of nitriles and dinitriles to primary amines.

Using CO2 as C1-feedstock for the chemical industry has attracted great attention. Here the authors develop a two-step cascade process to perform catalytic carbonylations of olefins, alkynes, and aryl halides using CO₂ and H₂.

Formic acid is a convenient hydrogen storage medium with storage release occurring via reversible hydrogenation of CO₂ and facilitated by noble metal-based catalysts. Now, reversible storage release is demonstrated using a non-noble, Mn-based catalyst in the presence of an amino acid.

Nitriles can be hydrogenated with a variety of precious metal catalysts, yet there is a lack of heterogeneous systems based on affordable metals such as iron. Here, the authors report a silica-supported Fe/Fe–O core–shell catalyst with the ability to hydrogenate nitriles in the presence of aluminium additives.

Exploring benign and green methodologies for the synthesis of functionalized nitriles continues to attract the interest of academic and industrial chemists. Here, the authors efficiently synthesize various aryl, heterocyclic, allylic, and aliphatic nitriles from alcohols in water under very mild conditions using zeolitic imidazolate frameworks derived Fe₁-N-C catalysts.

Access to renewable hydrogen represents an important target for the success of the hydrogen economy. Now, a one-pot method is presented for the conversion of cellulosic biomass into hydrogen via formic acid as the intermediate, followed by its application to a fuel cell.

Despite their higher abundance, 3d metal-based catalysts are less investigated than their precious metal counterparts. Here, the authors report a cobalt-triphos complex as molecularly-defined non-noble metal catalyst for the reductive amination of carbonyl compounds with gaseous ammonia and hydrogen.

Carbon dioxide is an abundant and easily available source of carbon, produced as a waste product in large quantities worldwide. Here, the authors review recent work on activating and reacting carbon dioxide for use as a building block in organic synthesis.

Pyrolysis of defined nitrogen-ligated cobalt acetate complexes onto a commercial carbon support transforms the complexes into heterogeneous Co₃O₄ materials. These reusable non-noble-metal catalysts are highly selective for the industrially important hydrogenation of structurally diverse and functionalized nitroarenes to anilines.

Single-atom catalysts have drawn increasing attention as methods for their preparation and characterization improve. Here, Beller and co-workers discuss the latest developments in the field of single-metal-site catalysts, discussing how this catalyst class bridges heterogeneous and homogeneous catalysis, and providing a perspective on how the field might continue to develop.

Nanocatalysts made up of Co₃O₄ surrounded by nitrogen-doped graphene layers are excellent activators of H₂ and O₂ for the hydrogenation and oxidation of organic compounds. They are environmentally benign, as water is the only reaction by-product.

A low-cost plasmonic photocatalyst based on earth-abundant metals (Fe, Cu) maximizes solar energy conversion due to the concerted interplay of energies and interactions between reactants and hot carriers, thus producing aromatic amines with a high yield.

SARS-CoV-2-specific CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ T cell epitopes are found in both convalescent patients and virus-naive volunteers and are indicative of heterologous recognition shared with seasonal cold viruses.

Reductive amination is essential to the preparation of amines (e.g., pharmaceuticals and industrial products). This protocol shows how to prepare and use graphitic shell–encapsulated cobalt-based nanoparticles as catalysts for this reaction.

Hydrogenation of functionalized substrates often relies on expensive noble metal—based catalysts. Jagadeesh et al. detail the hydrogenation of nitroarenes and the reductive amination of aldehydes with nitroarenes performed with an iron-based catalyst.

Cataloging microbial genomes from Earth’s environments expands the known phylogenetic diversity of bacteria and archaea.