An overview of N-heterocyclic carbenes.
review · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 24965649.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/nature13384.
- No licence information is recorded for this record.
- Because redistribution is not established, this page shows the abstract only. Follow the links below for the full text.
Abstract
The successful isolation and characterization of an N-heterocyclic carbene in 1991 opened up a new class of organic compounds for investigation. From these beginnings as academic curiosities, N-heterocyclic carbenes today rank among the most powerful tools in organic chemistry, with numerous applications in commercially important processes. Here we provide a concise overview of N-heterocyclic carbenes in modern chemistry, summarizing their general properties and uses and highlighting how these features are being exploited in a selection of pioneering recent studies.