C-H Bond Polarization by Multi-Site Concerted Electron-Proton Transfer (MS-CEPT)
The research group led by Prof. Amit Paul in the Department of Chemistry has demonstrated the first example of non-polar C-H bond functionalization using Multi-Site Concerted Electron Proton Transfer (MS-CEPT) in a direct electrode oxidation reaction. Since C-H bonds are non-polar, they do not typically pre-associate with a base or acid, which is necessary for the third-order MS-CEPT mechanism commonly observed in natural reactions. To overcome this limitation, the researchers utilized the cation of an electrolyte and polar solvents, which interact with carbonyl groups through hydrogen bonding. This interaction polarized the ?-C-H bond in a ?-ketoester, enabling the pre-association of a base with the C-H bond and facilitating the observation of MS-CEPT. This finding opens new opportunities for C-H bond activation through a kinetically advantageous pathway. C-H bond activation is crucial for the efficient and clean utilization of fuel. For more details, kindly visit: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.joc.5c02396.
