Recent advances in visible light-activated radical coupling reactions triggered by (i) ruthenium, (ii) iridium and (iii) organic photoredox agents

2021/01/01 by Jonathan D. Bell, John A. Murphy · 3 citations
Chemistry · #Catalytic C–H Functionalization Methods #Oxidative Organic Chemistry Reactions #Radical Photochemical Reactions

paper · pdf · doi:10.1039/d1cs00311a

openalex publication_date 2021/01/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28

Abstract

Photoredox chemistry with organic or transition metal agents has been reviewed in earlier years, but such is the pace of progress that we will overlap very little with earlier comprehensive reviews. This review first presents an overview of the area of research and then examines recent examples of C-C, C-N, C-O and C-S bond formations via radical intermediates with transition metal and organic radical promoters. Recent successes with Birch reductions are also included. The transition metal chemistry will be restricted to photocatalysts based on the most widely used metals, Ru and Ir, but includes coupling chemistries that take advantage of low-valent nickel, or occasionally copper, complexes to process the radicals that are formed. Our focus is on developments in the past 10 years (2011-2021). This period has also seen great advances in the chemistry of organic photoredox reagents and the review covers this area. The review is intended to present highlights and is not comprehensive.

Citations

• Visible Light Photoredox Catalysis with Transition Metal Complexes: Applications in Organic Synthesis
• Reductive Electrophotocatalysis: Merging Electricity and Light To Achieve Extreme Reduction Potentials
• Youth from all areas of Philadelphia kick off Peace Olympics with March
• Synthetic Methods Driven by the Photoactivity of Electron Donor–Acceptor Complexes
• The merger of decatungstate and copper catalysis to enable aliphatic C(sp3)–H trifluoromethylation
• Discovery and characterization of an acridine radical photoreductant
• When Light Meets Nitrogen-Centered Radicals: From Reagents to Catalysts
• Visible Light-Driven Radical-Mediated C–C Bond Cleavage/Functionalization in Organic Synthesis
• Hole-mediated photoredox catalysis: tris( <i>p</i> -substituted)biarylaminium radical cations as tunable, precomplexing and potent photooxidants

Cited by

• Easy-to-access iridium(III) NHC complexes as highly photoreducing photocatalysts having high photostability
• Enantioselective Radical Reactions Using Chiral Catalysts
• Recent Advances in Photoactive First‐Row Transition Metal Complexes for Organic Synthesis

Related

• Transition Metal-Catalyzed Organic Reactions under Visible Light: Recent Developments and Future Perspectives
• Visible‐Light‐Induced Homolysis of Earth‐Abundant Metal‐Substrate Complexes: A Complementary Activation Strategy in Photoredox Catalysis
• Visible Light-Induced Transition Metal Catalysis
• Metallaphotoredox: The Merger of Photoredox and Transition Metal Catalysis
• Enantioselective Radical Reactions Using Chiral Catalysts