Biocatalysis has been used extensively in various sectors in the last 2 decades for production of commodity/specialty chemicals and pharmaceuticals

Current trends in the development of microstructured reactors with thin catalytic films (from 100 nm up to several microns) that have self-assembled nanostructures are discussed. A major technique that is used to prepare such films is sol-gel processing. This involves depositing a complex fluid on a microstructured substrate by dip, spin, or spray coating, followed by surfactant removal to form the porous nanostructures. A novel methodology has been developed by which a uniform coating containing controlled amounts of (poly)metallic nanoparticles can be obtained. This elegant strategy is based on the condensation of metal oxide species by self-assembly in the presence of metallic colloids. The potential microreactor applications brought forth by this innovative protocol are placed in perspective in the light of its versatility

Microreactor technology is currently redefining the way many small molecules are manufactured. This paper will focus on the design and scale up strategy of microreactors. The main goal was to develop a reactor technology that can cope with tiny flow (few mL/min) required during pre-clinical studies up to larger flow rates (several hundreds of mL/min) necessary for phase III clinical trials

Corning Incorporated, the world leader in specialty glass and ceramics, provides significant performance benefits to industrial chemical processing through its Advanced-Flow glass reactors — high-throughput, easily scalable glass reactors that can be customized to customers’ specific needs — enabling a cost-effective solution for a single reaction or a wide portfolio of reactions

Microwaves have become a versatile tool in chemical laboratories where faster processes and carefully controlled reaction conditions are desirable. The applicator for microwave-enhanced processes is usually based on a cavity system with dimensions designed to allow a good interaction of the sample and a uniformly distributed electro-magnetic wave with a typical wave length of 12 cm (at 2.45 GHz)

Isolated enzyme or whole cell biocatalysts can be used to carry out biotransformations in which challenging chemical conversions such as carbon-carbon bond formations, oxidations, aminations or hydrolyses are achieved with very high atom efficiency and enantioselectivity. Whole cells can also be used to carry out the bioconversion of biomass materials into high-value chemicals and medicines. Recent protein engineering advances are described which will enable enzymes to be more efficiently improved for use in large-scale biotransformations

The enantiomers of 2-azabicyclo[2.2.1]hept-5-en-3-one are extremely versatile synthons and are being used in a growing number of drug candidates. A number of years ago we discovered a bioresolution approach to these compounds utilising a lactamase catalysed resolution of the racemic material. Discovery of efficient enzymes from wild type strains with complementary stereo selectivity made synthesis of both isomers of 2-azabicyclo[2.2.1]hept-5-en-3-one possible

Biocatalysts have significant potential for use in synthetic strategies to commercially important compounds due to their ability to perform highly stereoselective conversions. In addition, developments in protein and pathway engineering have led to biocatalyst improvements, enabled applications using non-natural substrates and alternative reaction stereoselectivities have been observed

Esters of cellulose and starch are well known commercial materials. Cellulose acetate, for example, is a major product with annual global production of over 1.5 billion pounds. The conventional acetylation processes involve solvents such as methylene chloride or high temperature with sulfuric or perchloric acid as a catalyst. A review is provided here of the recent reports concerning rapid, alternative preparation of cellulose and starch esters

The reactive borylene species was first generated and characterised in the 1970s, while borylenes were first stabilised by transition metals in the 1990s. These complexes possessed both stability and controlled reactivity; thus, transition metals were quickly recognised as a powerful tool for both studying the properties of borylenes and harnessing their reactivity in synthesis. Recently uncovered reactions of borylene complexes have hinted at the use of borylene complexes for both organic and organometallic purposes. This article gives an overview of the reactivity of transition metal borylene complexes and provides a vision for the future of the field

The homogeneous catalytic hydration of 2– and 3–cyanoquinolines yield the corresponding 2– and 3–quinolinecarboxamides in complete selectivity when using [(dippe)Ni(–H)]2 as catalyst precursor for these reactions

Diethoxymethane is an innovative and green solvent which has several unique properties. These properties include low water solubility, a binary azeotrope with water, a relatively high boiling point, and low freezing point. The solvent is stable to a wide pH range and temperature and is resistant to peroxide formation upon exposure to air. These properties make diethoxymethane a solvent worth considering when evaluating organometallic reactions

Various perfluoro-2-methylene-1,3-dioxolanes substituted on 4 and 5 positions were synthesized from corresponding hydrocarbon precursors by direct fluorination in fluorinated solvent by F2/N2 mixture. These perfluorodioxolane monomers were readily polymerized in bulk at 60-80oC using a perfluoroperoxide as the free radical initiator. The polymers obtained are completely amorphous

This microreview deals with the asymmetric formation of tertiary trifluoromethyl alcohols by diastereoselective nucleophilic trifluoromethylation of ketones with trifluoromethyl(trimethyl)silane. This reaction is often an intermediate step towards the synthesis of elaborated enantiopure multifunctional trifluoromethylated compounds, possibly for targeted applications. Information on the latter aspects are also briefly given

Partition coefficients of fluorous tagged compounds can be dramatically improved by solvent tuning. By increasing the solvating ability of the fluorous phase while increasing the fluorophobicity of the organic phase, the number and length of fluorous ponytails necessary to effect complete separation is reduced. Solvent tuning methods to improve fluorous liquid-liquid extractions are in direct contrast to traditional methods which are substrate tuning approaches that result in very high molecular weight compounds with many fluorous ponytails