REVIEW

Organic Reactions Catalyzed by N-Heterocyclic Olefins

  • Zhao Ming ,
  • Kuang Wencheng ,
  • Wang Fangkuo
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  • a College of Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Engineering, Hefei Normal University, Hefei 230601;
    b School of Chemistry and Materials Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026

Received date: 2026-05-26

  Revised date: 2026-07-01

  Online published: 2026-08-28

Supported by

Anhui Postdoctoral Science Foundation (No. 2024C834); the Natural Science Research Project of Anhui Educational Committee (No. 2024AH040214); the Science Research Project of Hefei Normal University (No. 2024KY48).

Abstract

N-Heterocyclic Olefins (NHOs) are structurally comparable to the deoxy Breslow intermediates. Due to the donating property of nitrogen atoms and the effective charge dispersion ability of heterocyclic rings, the carbon-carbon double bond of N-Heterocyclic Olefins is electron-rich and highly polarized. Consequently, the exocyclic carbon atom has strong basicity and high nucleophilicity. These characteristics enable NHOs to serve as ligands and organocatalysts. A series of important advances have been made in the field of organic reactions catalyzed by NHO. This review summarizes these developments. It covers the basicity and nucleophilicity of NHOs and the various organic reactions they catalyze.

Cite this article

Zhao Ming , Kuang Wencheng , Wang Fangkuo . Organic Reactions Catalyzed by N-Heterocyclic Olefins[J]. Chinese Journal of Organic Chemistry, 0 : 0 . DOI: 10.6023/cjoc202605027

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