N-Methylation of amines with methanol proceeds at room temperature in the presence of a silver-loaded titanium dioxide (Ag/TiO2) photocatalyst under UV-vis light irradiation. This method allows facile synthesis/isolation of N-methylamines bearing various functional groups including N-benzyl, N-allyl, N-Boc, hydroxyl, ether, acetal, carboxamide, formamide, and olefin groups.

A visible-light-driven carboxylation of aryl and alkenyl triflates with CO 2 is developed by using a combination of Pd and photoredox catalysts. This reaction proceeds under mild conditions and can be applied to a wide range of substrates including acyclic alkenyl triflates.

Photochemical transformation of biomass-derived or renewable substances with promising scalability is an important challenge for promoting green and sustainable chemistry. We report here that photocatalytic transfer hydrogenolysis of allyl alcohol (obtained from glycerol) gives potentially sustainable propylene with high chemo-and redox selectivity, promoted by powdered Pd/TiO 2 in CH 3 OH (obtained from CO 2 ) under near-ultraviolet-visible light irradiation (λ > 365 nm) at ambient temperature.

The reaction mechanism of palladium-catalyzed visible light-driven carboxylation of aryl halides and triflates with a photoredox catalyst was examined in detail. Experimental and theoretical studies indicated that the active species for photoredox-catalyzed reduction was cationic ArPd(II)+ species to generate nucleophilic ArPd(I) or its further reduced ArPd(0)− species, which reacted with CO2 to give carboxylic acids. Hydrodehalogenated compounds, main byproducts in this carboxylation, were thought to be generated by protonation of these reduced species.

We report herein a regio- and stereoselective photocatalytic hydrogenolysis of allylic alcohols to form unsaturated hydrocarbons employing a palladium(II)-loaded titanium oxide; the reaction proceeds at room temperature under light irradiation without stoichiometric generation of salt wastes. Olefin and saturated alcohol moieties tolerated the reaction conditions. Hydrogen atoms were selectively incorporated into less sterically congested carbons of the allylic functionalities. This protocol allowed a short-step synthesis of (S)-(+)-lavandulol from (R)-(-)-carvone by avoiding otherwise necessary protection/deprotection steps.