Issue 9, 2011

Gold-catalyzed oxidation in organic synthesis: a promise kept

Abstract

An overview of Prof. Michele Rossi's recent research and related scientific context is presented, dealing with liquid and gas phase oxidation of some organic compounds by gold catalysis. The application of mono- and bimetallic gold nanoparticles as an aid for organic synthesis has been mainly devoted to the aerobic oxidation of alcohols and aldehydes, as well as to the new synthesis of conducting polymers, thus demonstrating the superior performance of gold in terms of activity, selectivity and durability in comparison with traditional Pd and Pt catalysts. Starting from the observation that oxygen activation towards organic compounds occurs mainly in the presence of nanometric gold clusters, the outstanding properties of colloidal “naked” particles are also discussed. Thorough kinetic studies suggest models for interpreting the aerobic oxidation of glucose, thereby shedding light on the molecular mechanism, whilst the perspective for industrial applications of supported gold catalysts shows how the “yellow metal” is more than a promise.

Graphical abstract: Gold-catalyzed oxidation in organic synthesis: a promise kept

Article information

Article type
Perspective
Submitted
19 Jul 2011
Accepted
11 Oct 2011
First published
25 Oct 2011

Catal. Sci. Technol., 2011,1, 1564-1571

Gold-catalyzed oxidation in organic synthesis: a promise kept

C. Della Pina and E. Falletta, Catal. Sci. Technol., 2011, 1, 1564 DOI: 10.1039/C1CY00283J

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements