2020/07/16 by Jinjian Liu, Lingxiang Lu, Devin Wood +1 · 5 citations
Chemistry · #Radical Photochemical Reactions #Sulfur-Based Synthesis Techniques #Oxidative Organic Chemistry Reactions
paper · pdf · doi:10.1021/acscentsci.0c00549
openalex publication_date 2020/07/16 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/31
As the breadth of radical chemistry grows, new means to promote and regulate single-electron redox activities play increasingly important roles in driving modern synthetic innovation. In this regard, photochemistry and electrochemistry-both considered as niche fields for decades-have seen an explosive renewal of interest in recent years and gradually have become a cornerstone of organic chemistry. In this Outlook article, we examine the current state-of-the-art in the areas of electrochemistry and photochemistry, as well as the nascent area of electrophotochemistry. These techniques employ external stimuli to activate organic molecules and imbue privileged control of reaction progress and selectivity that is challenging to traditional chemical methods. Thus, they provide alternative entries to known and new reactive intermediates and enable distinct synthetic strategies that were previously unimaginable. Of the many hallmarks, electro- and photochemistry are often classified as "green" technologies, promoting organic reactions under mild conditions without the necessity for potent and wasteful oxidants and reductants. This Outlook reviews the most recent growth of these fields with special emphasis on conceptual advances that have given rise to enhanced accessibility to the tools of the modern chemical trade.