Abstract
Photochemistry, the use of light to promote organic transformations, has been known for more than a century but only recently has revolutionized the way modern chemists are thinking. Except from transition metal-based complexes, small organic molecules have been introduced as catalysts or initiators. In this review, we summarize the potential that (aromatic or aliphatic) aldehydes have as photoinitiators. The photophysical properties and photoreactivity of benzaldehyde are initially provided, followed by applications of aldehydes as initiators for polymerization reactions. Finally, the applications to date regarding aldehydes as photoinitiators in organic synthesis are presented.
Highlights
Photochemistry, and especially photoredox catalysis have altered the way that modern researchers treat radical species [1,2,3,4]
Since the natural abundance of various noble metals that are used as photocatalysts is limited and since any pharmaceutically relevant compounds must not contain any metal contamination [5], the use of organic dyes is quite popular and can substitute the use of metal-based photocatalysts [6]
Metal-based catalysts are common in reactions that require a high redox
Summary
Photochemistry, and especially photoredox catalysis have altered the way that modern researchers treat radical species [1,2,3,4]. A metal-based photocatalyst is employed, having multiple advantages since ligand manipulation can lead to optimized photoredox properties. The use of metals can pose some critical disadvantages in an organic process. An alternative solution is the use of organic molecules as photocatalysts. The power of metal-based photocatalysts is indisputable and can be pinpointed through the ease that they can catalyze difficult photocatalytic reactions, such as the decarboxylation of aliphatic acids and the coupling of the residual chain with various electrophiles. Metal-based catalysts are common in reactions that require a high redox
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