UCSD-CNRS Joint Research Chemistry Laboratory (IRL 3555), Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA (USA)
A decade ago, we recognized that due to their lone pair of electrons and accessible vacant orbital, singlet carbenes resemble transition metal centers, and thus are able to mimic their chemical behavior. We will discuss recent results demonstrating that, for some catalytic reactions including those involving single electron transfers, carbenes can indeed compete with transition metal complexes.
The development of catalytic processes promoted by carbenes, which are genuine organic compounds, could address the major drawbacks of current transition metal catalysis technology that are the excessive cost of metal complexes (metal + ligands) and in many cases the toxicity of the metal.
Carbenes are 6-electron species. To push the boundaries further, we wish to undress carbon atoms even more. As an illustration we will discuss our recent results dealing with a dicoordinate carbodication.
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