Chemists from the Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw claim to have demonstrated the catalytic efficiency of olefin metathesis reactions in a water solution.

Studying the performance of commercially available olefin metathesis catalysts in water, Karol Grela and his colleagues found water to be a good replacement for organic solvents.

Ultrasonication of water-soluble reactants floating on water formed an emulsion containing smooth catalytic metathesis after the addition of water insoluble catalysts.

Cross-metathesis reactions were also carried out in water with electron-deficient substrates, Chemical Technology reports.

Grela said: "This transformation is extremely rare in aqueous conditions, usually leading to poor conversions and low selectivities.

"To our knowledge, such reactions represent the first successful example of the high-yielding aqueous cross metathesis between an alkene and an electron-deficient partner," he added.

He thought that the sensitive ruthenium intermediates were "protected" inside the water-insoluble organic droplets.

Sources:

Water-based metathesis, 06/02/08
http://www.rsc.org/Publishing/ChemTech/Volume/2008/03/Water-based_metathesis.asp

Olefin metathesis in water using acoustic emulsification, 2008-02-07
http://www.rsc.org/delivery/_ArticleLinking/DisplayHTMLArticleforfree.cfm?JournalCode=GC&Year=2008&ManuscriptID=b719493e&Iss=Advance_Article

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