Electrochemical hydrogenation of alkenes over a nickel foam guided by life cycle, safety and toxicological assessments

Abstract

The electrochemical hydrogenation of enones and alkenes using commercial nickel foam and an aqueous acidic solution is presented. The reaction shows excellent selectivity in CC vs. CO reduction, with enhanced activity when using 7% of nBuOH as cosolvent. The method presents good applicability and recyclability properties, with more than 30 different substrates explored, and it can be recycled at least 15 times. Toxicological and screening life cycle assessments were used to identify potential “hotspots” of environmental and human health impact during the development phase of the method, as well as to evaluate the performance of the electrochemical nickel method against the conventional use of Pd/C and H₂ gas.