Out of the oil bath and into the oven—microwave-assisted combinatorial chemistry heats up

Abstract

The application of microwave irradiation to expedite solid-phase organic reactions could be the tool that allows combinatorial chemistry to deliver on its promise—providing rapid access to large collections of diverse small molecules. Herein, several different approaches to microwave (MW)-assisted solid-phase reactions and library synthesis are introduced, including the use of solid-supported reagents, multicomponent coupling reactions, solvent-free parallel library synthesis, and spatially addressable library synthesis on planar solid supports. The future impact of MW-assisted organic reactions on solid-phase and combinatorial chemistry could prove to be immense, and methods for further improvement of this strategic combination of technologies are highlighted.