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The More, The Better: Simultaneous In Situ Reaction Monitoring Provides Rapid Mechanistic and Kinetic Insight

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Abstract

Reaction progress kinetic analysis (RPKA) is a simple, yet powerful method to assess and interrogate reactions. Under this paradigm, measurements of a reaction’s dynamic behavior over time help elucidate the underlying mechanism. In general, greater data density and variety allows deeper understanding to be realized; therefore, the successful application of RPKA relies on quick, reliable, and high density acquisition of reaction data furnished by analytical tools. However, each individual technique has its own limitations, creating a “blind spot” that limits the ability to delineate a reaction or process. These limitations can be circumvented through the application of multiple, orthogonal analyses, ensuring that the data collected is truly representative of the chemistry studied. While multiple measurements are routinely used to study a reaction mechanism, they are typically performed sequentially, with each analysis being compared against a second for validation. Alternatively, the simultaneous application of different analytical methods provides more information, leading to rapid mechanistic and kinetic understanding. This article will briefly review recent studies where the concomitant application of different analytical instruments has been used to acquire high-density and cross-validated reaction progress information. Moreover, these studies represent cases where the reactions are studied under “real-world,” synthetically-relevant conditions, which have led to actionable data to understand and optimize the chemical process.

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank the University of British Columbia, the National Science foundation (DMR-1359406) and the Natural Science and Engineering Research council of Canada (RGPIN-2016-04613) for operating funds. Additionally, graduate student fellowship (to R. C.) was provided by Pfizer Inc.

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  1. Department of Chemistry, The University of British Columbia, 2036 Main Mall, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z1, Canada

    Ryan Chung & Jason E. Hein

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  1. Ryan Chung
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Correspondence to Jason E. Hein.

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This minireview is dedicated to Professor Donna G. Blackmond on the occasion of her receiving the Gabor A. Samorjai Award for Creative Research in Catalysis.

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Chung, R., Hein, J.E. The More, The Better: Simultaneous In Situ Reaction Monitoring Provides Rapid Mechanistic and Kinetic Insight. Top Catal 60, 594–608 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11244-017-0737-9

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