Abstract
The ever-growing need for sophisticated chemical compounds drives progress in the field of catalysis. It is essential to devise new inexpensive catalytic systems to reduce reaction time, increase the yield, and put a smaller burden on the environment. The discovery of nanomaterials has breathed fresh air into this area. Extraordinary surface-to-volume ratio and various quantum effects made these materials a promising alternative to the traditional catalysts. Particularly notable results come from implementing metal species arranged in 1D, which are referred to as nanowires (NWs). In this review, we illustrate their potential to catalyze various chemical transformations in organic chemistry. We demonstrate how NWs facilitate processes such as coupling and reduction. Furthermore, we show how these species can be used in electrochemistry and photo-catalysis. Finally, having described the advances in these areas, we envision the next steps which should be taken to bring this concept to the phase of commercial implementation.
NSTL
Elsevier