Organic chemistry
The latest chemistry news and research on organic chemistry, including synthesis, natural products and total synthesis, reaction mechanisms and supramolecular chemistry, from the Royal Society of Chemistry's magazine, Chemistry World
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ResearchCovalent organic frameworks could clean up water pollution and generate ‘green’ ammonia
Supramolecular structures can break down nitrates to produce ammonia and close the fertiliser loop
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ResearchBacteria discovered to be synthesising metal–organic frameworks with ‘extraordinary conductivity’
Biosynthesis of MOFs observed for the first time and could inspire the design of sustainable electronic structures
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Research40 years of patent data reveals an overreliance on hazardous solvents
AI models trained on biased datasets could perpetuate hazardous practices rather than making chemistry more sustainable
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WebinarIn conversation with Richmond Sarpong
Hear from the organic synthetic chemist rewriting the rules of molecular construction – join us 3 December
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ResearchTwo-in-one reagent combines fluoroalkylation with being click ready
Researchers add to growing toolkit of bifunctional reagents
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FeatureHow asymmetric autocatalysis won the Nobel prize
Mason Wakley tells the full story of how Henri Kagan and Kensō Soai’s work on non-linear effects and asymmetric autocatalysis won the 2026 Nobel prize in chemistry
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ResearchSkeletal editing step forward as carbon atoms swapped for nitrogen by embracing unreactive radical intermediate
The reaction’s mild conditions could aid editing of sensitive natural products
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ResearchTwo accidental nitroalkane reactions reveal complementary photochemical routes to alkenes and unite their discoverers
After independently uncovering new synthetic pathways for generating substituted alkenes, two researchers were introduced by a journal editor who spotted similarities between papers they had rejected
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NewsMeet the two scientists who have just won the 2026 Nobel prize in chemistry
Learn about the lives of newly minted chemistry Nobel laureates Henri Kagan and Kensō Soai
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NewsExplainer: what are autocatalysis and non-linear effects and why have they won the 2026 Nobel prize in chemistry?
How ‘one of the most spectacular chemical experiments ever conducted’ offers clues to life’s origins
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NewsReactions that demonstrate how homochirality can emerge take chemistry Nobel prize
Henri Kagan and Kenso Soai share the prize for ‘the discovery of non-linear effects and autocatalysis in asymmetric organic synthesis’
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ResearchHats off for new, lower temperature route to unzip plexiglass for recycling
Hydrogen atom transfer agents key to solvent-free method to produce pristine monomers from old acrylic
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ResearchSimple organic catalyst walks phosphate groups along sugar backbones
Inspired by nature, method is first example of autonomous mechanical motion in small molecules
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ResearchMeet diamondiyne, the new diamond-like carbon allotrope predicted 35 years ago
Unusual mix of sp and sp3 bonding could furnish porous material with unique properties
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ResearchColchicine total synthesis embraces electrochemistry
Route highlights how electrosynthesis, and to a lesser extent mechanochemistry, are becoming increasingly important to the synthetic chemist’s toolbox
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NewsUS appeals court strikes down risk management rule for DCM
Judges rule Environmental Protection Agency’s methylene chloride risk management rule is badly flawed
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ResearchSimple technique makes it easier to access and exploit hydrogen radicals
Highly reactive hydrogen radicals generated using ultraviolet light and off-the-shelf reagents
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ResearchChemists break cycloaddition ‘rule-of-five’ by simply tweaking electronic properties of molecule
Changing the substituents on a dialkene molecule influenced which bicyclic product formed during a photocycloaddition reaction
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NewsHideki Shirakawa, who shared chemistry Nobel for discovering conductive polymers, passes away at 90
Collaboration with Alan MacDiarmid and Alan Heeger on doped polyacetylenes ushered in new field of electronics
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OpinionChemistry contains multitudes
There’s room (and need) for all the various subspecies of chemical scientists