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Solvents are the major source of chemical waste from synthetic chemistry labs. Growing attention to more environmentally friendly sustainable processes demands novel technologies to substitute toxic or hazardous solvents. If not always, sometimes, water can be a suitable substitute for organic solvents, if used appropriately. However, the sole use of water as a solvent remains non-practical due to its incompatibility with organic reagents. Nonetheless, over the past few years, new additives have been disclosed to achieve chemistry in water that also include aqueous micelles as nanoreactors. Although one cannot claim micellar catalysis to be a greener technology for every single transformation, it remains the sustainable or greener alternative for many reactions. Literature precedents support that micellar technology has much more potential than just as a reaction medium, i.e. , the role of the amphiphile as a ligand obviating phosphine ligands in catalysis, the shielding effect of micelles to protect water-sensitive reaction intermediates in catalysis, and the compartmentalization effect. While compiling the powerful impact of micellar catalysis, this article highlights two diverse recent technologies: (i) the design and employment of the surfactant PS-750-M in selective catalysis; (ii) the use of the semisynthetic HPMC polymer to enable ultrafast reactions in water.
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This content will become publicly available on January 4, 2026
Electrocatalytic Micelle‐Driven Hydrodefluorination for Accessing Unprotected Monofluorinated Indoles
Abstract Toxic organic solvents and electrolytes, traditionally indispensable for electro‐organic synthesis, are now being reconsidered. In developing more sustainable electro‐organic synthesis, we've harnessed the aqueous micelles as solvents and electrolyte‐like structures when deformed under an electric field. The technology is showcased in synthetically highly valued hydrodefluorination reactions of difluorinated indoles. This mild electrosynthetic method produces monofluorinated unprotected indole scaffolds. Our approach minimizes waste and enhances atom economy, reducing reliance on expensive and hazardous solvents and electrolytes. The surfactant's potential for recycling was verified for two cycles. Cyclic voltammetry analysis has corroborated that PS‐750‐M micelles in water establish a more efficient platform for hydrodefluorination. Our technology simplifies the production of monofluorinated indoles, which are crucial for many drug‐like molecules.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2345856
- PAR ID:
- 10566663
- Publisher / Repository:
- Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Angewandte Chemie International Edition
- Volume:
- 64
- Issue:
- 10
- ISSN:
- 1433-7851
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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