Response of reaction mechanisms to electric-field catalysis on carbon nanotubes in microfluidic reactors.

ABSTRACT: If accessible under scalable bulk conditions, remote control of charge translocation during a molecular transformation with oriented external electric fields promises to make a major contribution to sustainable organic synthesis. Here, we show that the combination of electric-field catalysis with anion-π and cation-π catalysis on carbon nanotubes in electromicrofluidic devices can influence reaction mechanisms under scalable bulk conditions. At high voltage, epoxide-opening ether cyclizations that do not occur without electric fields proceed to completion. Sensitivity to the orientation of the applied field indicates the nature of the rate-limiting motif in the transition state. Increasing magnitude of the electric field can change reaction mechanisms and accelerate the intrinsically disfa

SUBMITTER: Gutierrez Lopez MA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12117509 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature