Mechanistic mysteries of nickel catalysts unveiled

New mechanistic studies have uncovered the role of salts and additives in the formation of active species in nickel-catalysed reactions. These results address ‘a fundamental gap in knowledge’, according to Eva Hevia, an expert in organometallic chemistry at the University of Bern, in Switzerland, who wasn’t involved in the study. ‘Such fundamental understanding will lead to new discoveries in nickel catalysis.’

‘We’ve discovered that common reagents and additives, previously deemed innocent, play a key role in controlling the behaviour of nickel complexes as catalysts,’ explains Rubén Martín from the Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia, lead author of the study. The team observed that some salts, including nickel halides, favoured the formation of nickel(II) compounds, which were undesirable for relevant reactions – among them reductive cross couplings. ‘Catalysis is very complex, and many components are interconnected, which makes them difficult to fully understand,’ adds Martín. ‘In certain cases, additives interact with the nickel catalyst to form new nickel species with different properties.’