Practical Synthesis of Useful Substances Using Organocatalysts Research Paper

Practical Synthesis of Useful Substances Using Organocatalysts - Research Paper Example This makes it a more efficient process, which uses fewer chemicals in the synthesis process, making it by a far greener and less toxic process. II. Background A. The concept of organocatalysis Acceleration of chemical processes through addition of substoichiometric quantity of organic compound refers to organocatalysis. In the last few years, interest in this field has increased because of selectivity and efficiency of many organocatalytic reactions, which have met standards of the required organic reactions. Observably, organocatalytic reactions are becoming popular in constructions of complex molecules. This recent development is because the process is less toxic compared to metallic catalysts. Predominant molecules used in the organocatalytic reaction are carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, sulphur and phosphorous (McMurry, 2009). Organocatalysts usually display secondary characteristics, which would lead to enamine catalysis or iminium catalysis. The mechanism involved is covalent organo catalysis. High catalysts loading apply in covalent binding of substrates while non-covalent bonding requires low substrate loading. Knoevenagel Condensation applies regular achiral organocatalysts, which uses nitrogen as its basis. The current focus of organocatalysis is asymmetric organocatalysis, which involves the use of chiral catalysts. Scientific reactions indicate asymmetric catalysis occurs when organocatalyst is chiral as observed in aldol reactions (McMurry, 2009). Organocatalysts have the following advantages they are less sensitive to moisture or oxygen, readily available, less toxic, and inexpensive (Berkessel, 2006). These advantages make organocatalysts preferable in pharmaceutical processes. During the chemical reactions toxin produced usually influence usage of certain chemical process. Notably, organocatalysis has less impact to the environment. The condition for the reaction is relatively mild thus making organocatalysts preferable over metal catalysts. The follo wing example illustrating Knoevenagel Condensation indicates that Piperdine forms iminium ion, which is reactive with carbonyl compound. Fig 1: Retrieved from http://www.organic-chemistry.org/topics/organocatalysis.shtm B. Definition of terms Catalyst is a chemical substance that increases the rate of a chemical reaction but does not change its chemical composition at the end of the chemical process. Organocatalyst are catalysts, which contain organic compounds. Enamine catalysts refers to a compound that forms when ketone or aldehyde react with secondary amine resulting into a loss of Water. Imine is a compound that contains carbon hydrogen double bond. Covalent bonding refers to a chemical bonding process where atoms share electrons. Covalent bonding occurs between non-metallic atoms. Chiral is a term used to describe a molecule that does not fit on its mirror image (Reetz & Joroch, 2008). Achiral refers to molecules that are identical or fit into their mirror image. Asymmetric or ganocatalysis refers to organic synthesis, which leads to introduction of desired element of chirality (Berkessel, 2006). This technology applies in pharmaceuticals since different enantiomers of molecule contain different biological components. Aldol reaction refers to a method that leads to formation of carbon-carbon bonds. Knoevenagel Condensation this refers to carbon acid compound condensation using aldehydes to produce unsaturated ? and ? compounds (Berkessel, 2006).

Homesite Report Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Homesite Report - Research Paper Example e oceans; the destruction they leave in their wake is devastating as was witnessed during the Indian Ocean Tsunami in 2004 where 230000 people lost their lives and property worth billions of dollars lost and the Japanese tsunami that led to the destruction of nuclear power plants leading to loss of lives and severe environmental degradation (Nanto 15)  Ã‚  Additionally, active volcanoes pose a major threat to those who live near them, since the possibility of property being buried under volcanic ash is always real. Wildfires are a major threat since once they start, they are difficult to contain and they have often led to major losses as witnessed in the Greek forest fires in 2009 (Amiridis et al. 6)  The other natural disaster that is likely to affect residents adversely is drought, which reduces the value of property and increases the cost of living. To make the right decision about where to settle, one has to look at the likelihood of any of these happening.  Having consider ed all these factors, three cities were found to be the most suitable.  Ã‚   The 2012 United Nations world risk report listed Qatar as the safest country from natural disasters, out of 173 countries worldwide (ADW 4)  Doha is the capital city of Qatar, which is in the Middle East. The country is located in a geologic setting, which makes it less susceptible to earthquakes. It’s tectonically gentle and the country, being one of the biggest oil and gas producers in the world, has the financial muscle which it has used to install six earthquake sensors that further reduces the possibility of residents being caught unawares (USGS) Being in the desert and receiving very little rain throughout the year, the risk of flooding and landslides in Doha is virtually nonexistent. Due to its geologic setting, the country is also not susceptible to tsunamis. The vegetation in Qatar is quite sparse thus making it rather difficult to sustain wildfires. The country does not have active volcanoes, thus