An Overview of Electrochemical Olefination for Sustainable Alkene Synthesis

Abstract

Electrochemical olefination has emerged as a fascinating alternative to classical phospho-rus-based and stoichiometric oxidant-dependent methods for constructing carbon-carbon dou-ble bonds. This review comprehensively examines diverse electrochemical pathways for alkene synthesis, spanning anodic oxidation, cathodic reduction, and hybrid metallaelectrocatalytic strategies, mechanistic investigation involving radical and organometallic intermediates, analy-sis of functional group tolerance in complex substrates, technological advancements and emerging applications in asymmetric synthesis as well as in pharmaceutical derivatization. We evaluate catalytic systems featuring metal-free alongside palladium, rhodium, nickel, and co-balt catalyzed/mediated synthetic strategies across diverse molecular scaffolds.Strategic inte-gration with renewable electricity infrastructure and complementary activation modes includ-ing photocatalysis positions electrochemical olefination as an indispensable component of con-temporary sustainable synthesis across academic and industrial protocols.2