Revolutionizing organic chemistry by utilizing water as solvent

2019 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 15H05698
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Specially Promoted Research
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Review Section: Science and Engineering; Chemistry
• Research Institution: The University of Tokyo
• Principal Investigator: KOBAYASHI Shu 東京大学, 大学院理学系研究科, 教授 (50195781)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): HATANAKA Miho 奈良先端科学技術大学院大学, 研究推進機構, 特任准教授 (80616011)
• Research Collaborator: KITANOSONO Taku 東京大学, 大学院理学系研究科, 助教 (50755981)
• Project Period (FY): 2015 – 2019
• Keywords: 反応有機化学 / 水溶媒

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This research project spotlighted the catalyst development to find out chemical reactions that proceed only in water or that show unique selectivity in water. In addition, the challenges covered merging biocatalysts and artificial catalysts, and establishing a new approach in computational and analytical chemistry to overcome the difficulties in performing mechanistic study of heterogeneous reactions where substrates were insoluble. Consequently, a large number of reactions have been discovered so far, including unpublished data, where water is a sine qua non as a reaction medium. Meanwhile, the findings obtained from mechanistic studies led to improvements of reaction conditions. These achievements will accelerate the global recognition of “organic chemistry using water as a reaction medium” as a new organic chemistry distinct from conventional organic chemistry.

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

未発表の業績も含め学術的価値の高い業績が多数得られており、従来の有機溶媒を中心とする有機化学とは異なる新しい有機化学としての世界的な認知も一層加速されるものと考えられる。水中で有効に機能する触媒の開発においては、Lipshutz教授らによって纏められた総説(ACS Sustainable Chem. Eng. 2016)の“Nature vs the organic chemist : who wins?”と題するセクション中で本研究課題で得られた難溶性銅塩表面での不斉反応事例(JACS 2015)が新しい化学を切り拓くのに必須であるだろう(be crucial for the success of this new chemistry)と記述されているなど、これまでの有機溶媒を中心とする有機化学とは異なる新しい有機化学としての認知が進んでいることが客観的にも示されている。

Free Research Field

化学