Electrosynthesis has received great attention among researchers in both academia and industry as an ideal technique to promote single electron reduction without the use of expensive catalysts. In this work, we report the electrochemical reduction of Katritzky salts to alkyl radicals by sacrificing the easily accessible metal anode. This catalyst and electrolyte free platform has broad applicability to single electron transfer chemistry, including fluoroalkenylation, alkynylation and thiolation. The deaminative functionalization is facilitated by the rapid molecular diffusion across microfluidic channels, demonstrating the practicality that outpaces the conventional electrochemistry setups.

An efficient and robust methodology based on electrochemical techniques for the direct synthesis of aromatic lactones through dehydrogenative C-O cyclization is described. This new and useful electrochemical reaction can tolerate a variety of functional groups, and is scalable to 100 g under mild conditions. Remarkably, heterocycle-containing substrates can be employed, thus expanding the scope of radical C-O cyclization reactions.

A Markovnikov-selective hydroacylation of alkenes has been achieved via the synergistic merger cobalt, photoredox and N-heterocyclic carbene catalysis. The closely incorporated catalytic cycles allow for Co(III) generation by photochemical oxidation instead of chemical oxidants or anodizing process. This mild, operationally simple protocol converts a wide variety of commercially available alkenes and aroyl fluorides into the corresponding ketones in high yield with branched selectivity.

A novel electrochemical protocol for the direct oxidation of internal alkynes in air to provide 1,2-diketones was developed.