Sulfoxides are uncommon substrates for transition-metal catalysis due to their propensity to inhibit catalyst turnover. In a collaborative effort with Ken Houk, we developed the first dynamic kinetic resolution (DKR) of allylic sulfoxides using asymmetric rhodium-catalyzed hydrogenation. A detailed mechanistic analysis of this transformation using both experimental and theoretical methods revea...

Aerogels are a special class of porous material, which have excellent physicochemical properties such as low density, high porosity, high surface area and adjustable surface chemistry. Aerogels were first prepared several decades ago, but never truly commercialized due to their high cost. Technological advancements in the production and quality of different types of aerogel cut costs down and m...

Machine learning has proven to be a powerful technique during the past decades. Artificial neural network (ANN), as one of the most popular machine learning algorithms, has been widely applied to various areas. However, their applications for catalysis were not well-studied until recent decades. In this review, we aim to summarize the applications of ANNs for catalysis research reported in the ...

Natural RNA catalysts (ribozymes) perform essential reactions in biological RNA processing and protein synthesis, whereby catalysis is intrinsic to RNA structure alone or in combination with metal ion cofactors. The recently discovered glmS ribozyme is unique in that it functions as a glucosamine-6-phosphate (GlcN6P)-dependent catalyst believed to enable "riboswitch" regulation of amino-sugar b...

Interest in catalysis by metal nanoparticles (NPs) is increasing dramatically, as reflected by the large number of publications in the last five years. This field, "semi-heterogeneous catalysis", is at the frontier between homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis, and progress has been made in the efficiency and selectivity of reactions and recovery and recyclability of the catalytic materials. ...