Description
Book SynopsisOn the way towards sustainable and green chemistry, scientists found a key technology which allows chemical transformations to proceed with minimum waste generation and energy consumption. The key is transition metal catalysis which is also attractive from an economical point of view. At the end of 19th century, Alfred Werner defined basics of coordination chemistry which were significant for the development of transition metal catalysis. In the 1930s, the Oxo Process, in which olefins react with syngas to produce linear and branched aldehydes, was developed by Otto Roelen. The reaction is still widely used and allows to produce millions metric tons of oxo chemicals. A following milestone in transition metal catalysis occurred in the 1950s when the Wacker Process was developed. The reaction allows to oxidize olefins to aldehydes and ketones with the use of PdCl2 as catalyst. Many other reactions were developed involving transition metal catalysis, including important processes such
