Photochemical methods in metathesis reactions

Abstract

In this first review about photometathesis, we have gathered the relevant literature to give the reader an in-depth understanding of these fascinating reactions and to inspire future research.

Molecular Acrobatics in Polycyclic Frames: Synthesis of “Kurmanediol” via Post-synthetic Modification of Cage Molecules by Olefinic Metathesis

“…Creating space-enclosing polycycles of novel shapes and symmetry is considered a synthetic challenge . Complex molecules are generally synthesized by a linear sequence where the complexity is increased slowly.…”

Self-Sensitized Photooxidation of Naphthols to Naphthoquinones and the Use of Naphthoquinones as Visible Light Photocatalysts in Batch and Continuous Flow Reactors

“…Visible light photochemistry is particularly appealing from a green chemistry standpoint, as it enables a large variety of chemical transformations to operate under very mild conditions. − Because most organic compounds do not absorb visible light, the main method of driving such processes is to use a photocatalyst (also called a “photosensitizer”) to transfer electrons or energy to a given substrate upon excitation by one or multiple photons. − These processes can be mediated by either organic or organometallic photocatalysts, such as rose bengal, − porphyrins, methylene blue (MB), − or ruthenium trisbipyridine salts, − to name a few. Such photocatalysts and their derivatives have been widely used in organic synthesis, particularly in the context of singlet oxygen ( 1 O 2 ) mediated photooxidations (in this context the term “photosensitizer” is more appropriate) .…”