Pickering emulsion droplet-based biomimetic microreactors for continuous flow cascade reactions.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 35078989.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-022-28100-6 and PMC identifier 8789915.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
A continuous flow cascade of multi-step catalytic reactions is a cutting-edge concept to revolutionize stepwise catalytic synthesis yet is still challenging in practical applications. Herein, a method for practical one-pot cascade catalysis is developed by combining Pickering emulsions with continuous flow. Our method involves co-localization of different catalytically active sub-compartments within droplets of a Pickering emulsion yielding cell-like microreactors, which can be packed in a column reactor for continuous flow cascade catalysis. As exemplified by two chemo-enzymatic cascade reactions for the synthesis of chiral cyanohydrins and chiral ester, 5 - 420 fold enhancement in the catalysis efficiency and as high as 99% enantioselectivity were obtained even over a period of 80 - 240 h. The compartmentalization effect and enriching-reactant properties arising from the biomimetic microreactor are theoretically and experimentally identified as the key factors for boosting the catalysis efficiency and for regulating the kinetics of cascade catalysis.