This review summarizes key development of N‐heterocyclic carbene organic catalysis, with a particular focus on the basic activation and reaction modes enabled by NHCs. More details are discussed in the article by Chi et al. on page 1167—1202.
The back cover picture shows the first LA‐catalyzed [3+2]IMCC of GDA‐epoxides with carbon‐carbon double bonds. This provides an efficient and general strategy for construction of bridged oxa‐[n.2.1] skeletons. A novel SN‐like mechanism through a carbon‐carbon bond cleavage of epoxide ring has been proposed. The colorful fireworks in the picture imply the generation of skeletal diversity from the epoxide‐diene, and express a dedication to the 100th Anniversary of Nankai University as well. More details are discussed in the article by Wang et al. on page 695–699.
The inside back cover picture depicts the inverse-electron-demand Diels–Alder reactions of 2-pyrones with various readily available dihydropyrroles and dihydrofurans. By the catalysis of lanthanide salts, these reactions occur with high yields and enantioselectivities, thus providing a step-economical synthetic platform for densely functionalized cis-hydroindoles and cis-hydrobenzofurans. The synthetic utility of this approach is demonstrated by the concise synthesis of (–)-α-lycorane and (–)-lycorine alkaloids. More details are discussed in the article by Cai et al. on page 21—26.
5‐Bromofuran‐2‐carboxylates were conducted in a palladium‐catalyzed reductive homocoupling reactions in the presence of alcohols as the reductant to afford [2,2’]bifuran‐5,5’‐dicarboxylic acid esters, which are essential monomers of poly(ethylene bifuranoate), serving as an green and versatile alternative polymer for traditional poly(ethylene terephthalate). More details are discussed in the article by Yin and Jiang et al. on page 62—68.
The cover picture shows that a new class of axially chiral aryl‐alkene‐indole frameworks has been constructed by the strategy of designing 3‐alkynyl‐2‐indolylmethanols as versatile reactants for catalytic asymmetric cyclizations. This approach represents the first catalytic asymmetric construction of axially chiral alkene‐heteroaryl scaffolds, which will add a nascent member to the atropisomeric family. The authors devised the innovative strategy to construct the intriguing axially chiral frameworks, just like Nuwa used the 'five‐colored stone' to mend the sky in the mythology of ancient China. More details are discussed in the article by Shi and Jiao et al. on page 543—552.
The alkoxy radicals derived from cyclic hemiacetals are generated through visible-light-induced electron transfer with NaI and Ph3P as the catalyst. Subsequent β-scission generates carbon-centered radicals, which are trapped by cinnamic acids, aryl alkenes, vinylboronic acid and silyl enol ether to deliver the corresponding C—C bond forming products. More details are discussed in the article by Wang et al. on page 259–264.
Reactions of homoleptic rare‐earth aryloxides based Lewis pairs with organic azides were investigated, which gave either bimetallic rare‐earth azide complexes in an end‐to‐end fashion or FLP‐type 1,1‐addition product depending on the nature of azide reagents. The current reaction was found to be applicable for Lewis acids across the full range of rare‐earth metals. More details are discussed in the article by Xu et al. on page 559—564.
The cover picture shows a synergistically directed assembly route towards novel multi‐component coordination architectures driven by aromatic donor‐acceptor and coordination interactions. The huge structural discrepancies between coronene donor present and absent experiments clearly prove the significance of aromatic donor‐accepter pairs and their inherent cooperation mechanism in these assembly processes. More details are discussed by Bu et al. on page 871–877.
Metal‐air batteries have achieved great proceedings in the past decade. This review summarizes progresses of cathode evolution and anode protection strategies in the area of Li/Na‐air batteries and prototypes of flexible batteries are presented. More details are discussed in the article by Zhang et al. on page 32—42.
Glycerol molecules can be selectively converted into 1,2‐propanediol in water by the way of Ni‐based Great‐Wall Catalysts with Beacon‐like macropores and Passage‐like mesoporous channels. Otherwise, an amount of by‐product lactic acid was produced via rearrangement from glycerol. More details are discussed in the article by Zhang & Ma et al. on page 439–444.
The back cover picture shows an efficient organic ligand‐free heterogeneous catalytic system for hydroformylation of olefins with simple Rh particles as the catalyst. The Rh black catalyst showed good catalytic activity for a broad substrate scope including the aliphatic and aromatic olefins, affording the desired aldehydes in good yields. The catalyst could be reused several times without loss of activity under identical reaction conditions, and the Rh leaching was negligible after each cycle. More details are discussed in the article by Shi et al. on page 139 ‐ 143.
The cover picture shows that sequential 1,1‐dihydrosilylation of terminal aliphatic alkynes with primary silanes enabled by one earth‐abundant cobalt catalyst has been developed. This protocol is operationally simple using readily available aliphatic alkynes, including simple acetylene and complex drug derivative, for efficient access to valuable gem‐bis(dihydrosilyl)alkanes in highly regioselective and atom‐economic manners. Corresponding asymmetric transformations are achieved with excellent enantioselectivities. More details are discussed in the article by Lu et al. on page 457–461.
The cover picture shows the molecular modeling software package SPONGE (Simulation Package tOward Next GEneration molecular modeling). SPONGE is designed to be efficient and highly modulated. Especially, advanced machine learning algorithms can be easily merged into MD simulations by using SPONGE. All these features increase the power of SPONGE for modeling and simulation of complex chemical and biological systems. More details are given in the article by Gao et al. on page 160–168.
In this paper, we design a new interrupted AST‐type zeolitic imidazolate framework with cub and interrupted ast cages, which exhibits permanent porosity, high hydrophobicity and strong solid‐state photoluminescent properties. More details are discussed in the article by Wang & Zhang et al. on page 449–452.
The back cover picture shows a supramolecularly‐controlled topochemical reaction of conjugated dienes under irradiation in homogeneous system. Using this method, the cyclooctadiene‐cored derivatives are synthesized very efficiently. Moreover, the cyclooctadiene tetraimidazolium derivatives can be applied as fluorescent chemosensors for thymine in aqueous solution at physiological pH (7.4). More details are discussed in the article by Han et al. on page 1040—1044.
The development of azobenzene‐containing polymers (azopolymers) opens up an avenue for controlling their properties and functions with light. These polymers show shape changes and mechanical responses under the stimulation of light via photoisomerization of azobenzene groups. Herein, this report focuses on the growing research on moving polymers via photoisomerization, including their moving mechanisms and various applications. More details are discussed in the article by Wu et al. on page 1019—1022.
The cover picture shows A new strategy for preparing antimicrobial peptides from the natural occurring peptide gramicidin A has been developed by simply removing its N‐terminal formyl group and decoration at the terminal NH2 group. The peptides are able to selectively insert into Gram‐positive bacterial membrane to form transmembrane channels but not that of erythrocyte membrane, which leads to their high antimicrobial activity and low hemolytic toxicity. More details are discussed in the article by Hou et al. on page 25–29.
The inside cover picture shows the hydrogen transfer process of the production of acetic acid from ethanol and water mixture catalyzed by iridium catalyst owning bpyO ligand. A DFT mechanistic study indicates that the cooperation of the iridium center and bpyO ligand plays an important role in the catalytic activity, and that the hydrogen release process from the iridium center is the rate‐determining step. More details are discussed in the article by Lei et al. on page 883–886.
The inside cover picture shows the development of chiral pyridoxal and pyridoxamine catalysts by mimicking vitamin B6‐dependent enzymes. These chiral pyridoxals and pyridoxamines displayed extraordinary catalytic performances in asymmetric biomimetic transamination and Mannich reaction, to give various chiral α‐amino acids and α,β‐diamino acid esters in good yields with excellent diastero‐ and/or enantioselectivities. The research has provided some useful information for further applications of the catalytic power of vitamin B6 in the area of asymmetric cayalysis. More details are discussed in the article by Zhao et al. on page 103–112.
The bifunctional roles of CH3COO– (complexation effect and decreasing temperature of PVP complete decomposition) are utilized to synthesize electrospun LaCoO3 perovskites at a low‐temperature 400 °C. The obtained material can be applied in the catalytic oxidation of volatile organic compounds, like stable propane. More details are discussed in the article by Luo and Qian et al. on page 144 ‐ 150.
