Recent Advances in Nonprecious Metal Catalysis

Abstract

Nonprecious-metal-catalyzed alternatives to powerful precious metal transformations are of increasing interest in academia and the pharmaceutical industry due to the lower cost, better sustainability, and lower toxicity. With the continual growth in the broad field of nonprecious metal catalysis (NPMC), we have chosen to highlight selected articles published from March to June 2022 which are intended to highlight examples of NPMC that we feel may be especially relevant to pharmaceutical development. We aim to inspire academic and industrial innovation in NPMC through the discussion herein.

How to Develop Organometallic Catalytic Reactions in the Pharmaceutical Industry

“…Many of the catalysts commonly used in the pharmaceutical industry can surpass a TON of 10 3 , but seldom do they reach 10 4 . Therefore, the increasing cost of very precious metals like Pd, Rh, and Ir poses a significant problem, which has two viable solutions: the development of high-TON catalysts based on well-characterized precious metal catalysts or the development of catalysts based on more abundant (base) metals, like Fe or other readily available ones . Although many new processes utilizing base metals are becoming available and are beginning to be understood mechanistically, the pharma industry has not yet fully embraced these alternative metals.…”

Bayesian Optimization as a Sustainable Strategy for Early-Stage Process Development? A Case Study of Cu-Catalyzed C–N Coupling of Sterically Hindered Pyrazines

“…While their extraction from ores is not free from environmental challenges (the average amount of copper per ton of ore is 0.5–2%), it is clear that Earth-abundant metal catalysis is a more sustainable alternative to the use of precious metals. In fact, this research field has attracted considerable attention from both industrial and academic researchers over the last years. − …”

Nickelacyclobutanes: Versatile Reactivity and Role as Catalytic Intermediates

“…Catalysis is an essential tool for the development of more environmentally friendly chemical processes. Our ability to discover new catalytic reactions and improve existing ones relies on a solid understanding of the underlying reaction mechanism and catalytic intermediates [1] . While the nature and reactivity of such intermediates can often be inferred indirectly from kinetic studies and the analysis of product distributions, their transient nature renders direct observation very challenging.…”

“…Our ability to discover new catalytic reactions and improve existing ones relies on a solid understanding of the underlying reaction mechanism and catalytic intermediates. [1] While the nature and reactivity of such intermediates can often be inferred indirectly from kinetic studies and the analysis of product distributions, their transient nature renders direct observation very challenging. Often, the design of relatively stable analogues of unstable intermediates (model compounds) helps understand their structure and reactivity and provides experimental support for the feasibility of putative mechanistic pathways.…”