Harnessing CO₂ Radical Anion-Mediated Electron Transfer for Scalable Copper-Catalyzed Cross-Coupling.

ABSTRACT: The inherently sluggish single-electron transfer from copper(I) complexes to alkyl halides remains a central bottleneck in copper-catalyzed cross-coupling chemistry. Here, we introduce a conceptually distinct strategy that overcomes this limitation by harnessing the unique reactivity of the carbon dioxide radical anion (CO₂^·-) to undergo efficient single-electron transfer to alkyl bromides. The strategy relies on the generation of CO₂^·- via Cu-catalyzed C-H bond activation of the formate anion. CO₂^·- then undergoes an efficient single-electron transfer to alkyl bromides to generate alkyl radicals for subsequent Cu-catalyzed transformations. A broad range of unactivated alkyl bromides and structurally diverse nucleophiles─inc

SUBMITTER: Wu S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12814328 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature