Carbynes expand the possibilities of carbon–carbon double bonds

Chemists have long known how to build and break carbon–carbon double bonds. But now, researchers at the Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia, Spain, can ‘expand’ them by inserting a new carbon atom between them. This remodelling of organic skeletons using rhodium carbynoids, should open up a myriad of new possibilities in the preparation of bioactive compounds, agrochemicals and materials.