A synthetic chemist's guide to electroanalytical tools for studying reaction mechanisms

Monitoring reactive intermediates can provide vital information in the study of synthetic reaction mechanisms, enabling the design of new catalysts and methods. Many synthetic transformations are centred on the alteration of oxidation states, but these redox processes frequently pass through interme...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Chemical science (Cambridge) 2019-07, Vol.1 (26), p.644-6422
Main Authors: Sandford, Christopher, Edwards, Martin A, Klunder, Kevin J, Hickey, David P, Li, Min, Barman, Koushik, Sigman, Matthew S, White, Henry S, Minteer, Shelley D
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Chemistry
Chemists
Monitoring
Organic chemistry
Oxidation
Reaction mechanisms
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Summary:Monitoring reactive intermediates can provide vital information in the study of synthetic reaction mechanisms, enabling the design of new catalysts and methods. Many synthetic transformations are centred on the alteration of oxidation states, but these redox processes frequently pass through intermediates with short life-times, making their study challenging. A variety of electroanalytical tools can be utilised to investigate these redox-active intermediates: from voltammetry to in situ spectroelectrochemistry and scanning electrochemical microscopy. This perspective provides an overview of these tools, with examples of both electrochemically-initiated processes and monitoring redox-active intermediates formed chemically in solution. The article is designed to introduce synthetic organic and organometallic chemists to electroanalytical techniques and their use in probing key mechanistic questions. A range of electroanalytical tools can be applied to studying redox reactions, probing key mechanistic questions in synthetic chemistry.
ISSN:2041-6520
2041-6539
DOI:10.1039/c9sc01545k