For the first time lactic acid was applied as an efficient and green catalyst for the one-pot three-component synthesis of amidoalkyl naphthols via the condensation between arylaldehydes, 2-naphthol and amides or urea under thermal solvent-free conditions in good to excellent yields. We have demonestrated a mild and efficient eco-friendly tandem synthesis of amidoalkyl naphthols using lactic ac...

We have introduced a selective synthesis of tertiary amines using alkyl halide and ammonium salts as the amine sources in water. This green process has outstanding superiorities, such as being eco-friendly, possessing ammonium salts, and using water as a green solvent in the absence of organic ligands or catalysts. It is worth mentioning that the presence of t-Butyl alcohol and potassi...

An environmentally friendly ("green"), H2-generation system was developed that involved hydrolytic oxidation of inexpensive organosilanes as hydrogen storage materials with newly developed heterogeneous gold nanoparticle catalysts. The gold catalyst functioned well at ambient temperature under aerobic conditions, providing efficient production of pure H2. The newly developed size-selective gold...

Over the past decades it has become clear that supported gold nanoparticles are surprisingly active and selective catalysts for several green oxidation reactions of oxygen-containing hydrocarbons using molecular oxygen as the stoichiometric oxidant. We here report that bifunctional gold–titania catalysts can be employed to facilitate the oxidation of amines into amides with high selectivity. Fu...

By employing aerobic oxidation to aldehydes as a more effective alcohol activation strategy, ligand-free copper catalysts were found to be superior catalysts than other metals in aerobic dehydrative β-alkylation of secondary alcohols and α-alkylation of methyl ketones using alcohols as the green alkylating reagents. Based on our mechanistic studies and also supported by the literature, we deduc...

The development of green synthesis methods for supported noble metal catalysts remains important challenges to improve their sustainability. Here we first synthesized carbon-supported Pd catalysts in a green Leidenfrost droplet reactor without reducing agents, high-temperature calcination and reduction procedures. When the aqueous solution containing Pd nitrate precursor, carbon support, and wa...

Organic synthetic methodology in the 21st century aims to conform to the principles of green sustainable chemistry (GSC) and we may expect that in the future, the realization of GSC will be an important objective for chemical industries. An important aim of synthetic organic chemistry is to implement waste-free and environmentally-benign industrial processes using Lewis acids as versatile as al...

The recycling of chemicals and generation of alternative energy are central topics in the efforts toward sustainable development. Among these, research on plastics recycling and fuel cells has received significant attention, with the aim of designing novel catalysts to improve yield and efficiency. We highlight our work on these areas focusing on the chemical depolymerization of polyethylene te...

This article provides an overview on recent progress in the green synthesis of cyclic carbonates (CCs) from carbon dioxide (CO2) catalyzed by chlorine-free catalysts. Special emphasis is placed on the synthetic routes and catalyst structures that govern the reactivity and selectivity.