Mechanochemical, solvent free, palladium-catalyzed hydrodechlorination of chloroaromatic hydrocarbons

Mechanochemical destruction of halogenated organic pollutants: A critical review

Many tons of intentionally produced obsolete halogenated persistent organic pollutants (POPs), are stored worldwide in stockpiles, often in an unsafe manner. These are a serious threat to the environment and to human health due to their ability to migrate and accumulate in the biosphere. New technologies, alternatives to combustion, are required to destroy these substances, hopefully to their complete mineralization. In the last 20 years mechanochemical destruction has shown potential to achieve pollutant degradation, both of the pure substances and in contaminated soils. This capability has been tested for many halogenated pollutants, with various reagents, and under different milling conditions. In the present paper, a review of the published work in this field is followed by a critique of the state of the art of POPs mechanochemical destruction and its applicability to full-scale halogenated waste treatment.

Reductive alkylation of active methylene compounds with carbonyl derivatives, calcium hydride and a heterogeneous catalyst

A one-pot two-step reaction (Knoevenagel condensation - reduction of the double bond) has been developed using calcium hydride as a reductant in the presence of a supported noble metal catalyst. The reaction between carbonyl compounds and active methylene compounds such as methylcyanoacetate, 1,3-dimethylbarbituric acid, dimedone and the more challenging dimethylmalonate, affords the corresponding monoalkylated products in moderate to good yields (up to 83%) with minimal reduction of the starting carbonyl compounds.

Synthetic applications of hypophosphite derivatives in reduction

The purpose of this review is to collect the applications in fine synthesis of hypophosphite derivatives as reducing agents.

Reductive amination using a combination of CaH2 and noble metal

Amines were prepared by a reductive amination reaction in the presence of calcium hydride and Pt/C.

Application of microwave irradiation in the removal of polychlorinated biphenyls from soil contaminated by capacitor oil

The applicability of microwave irradiation in the removal of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) from the soil heavily contaminated by capacitor oil was studied. Granular activated carbon (GAC) was added into the soil as a microwave-absorbing material to rapidly increase the temperature of the reaction system. Effects of sodium hypophosphite (SHP) and iron powder (IP) as reductants on PCB removal, as well as the effects of water content in soil, microwave power and the amount of GAC added were investigated. The results indicated that in the presence of SHP and GAC, about 80% of PCBs in soil were effectively removed by 10 min microwave irradiation, and the further addition of IP could raise the average removal efficiency to a higher level, more than 95%. In the removal of PCBs with the microwave/GAC/IP/SHP system, an appropriate amount of water proved to be helpful in promoting the removal of PCBs from soil by steam distillation and in acting as a co-solvent of SHP and H-donor of IP.