Solvent Screening Is Not Solvent Effect: A Review on the Most Neglected Aspect of Multicomponent Reactions

• Published in: European journal of organic chemistry Vol. 2022; no. 30
• Main Authors: Neto, Brenno A D., Eberlin, Marcos N., Sherwood, James
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Weinheim Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 12-08-2022
• Subjects: Control; Mechanism; Multicomponent reactions; Solvent effect; Solvents; Synthetic methods
• ISSN: 1434-193X; 1099-0690
• DOI: 10.1002/ejoc.202200172

In the current Perspective article, we critically review and discuss the importance of solvent effects on multicomponent reactions, likely the most neglected aspect in this research field. Although solvent‐free reactions may be desirable sometimes, most multicomponent reactions still require a solvent to properly promote them. This requirement makes the knowledge of all drawbacks and advantages of each solvent a central issue when trying to optimize multicomponent reactions. Yet, only a few studies with actual evidence of solvent effects on these key reactions have been published. For the quantitative effects of solvents, studies are even scarcer. In this Perspective, we argue that greater efforts should be directed to such fundamental studies.
Solvent effect, the most neglected aspect in the study of multicomponent reactions (MCRs) has been reviewed. The essential role of solvent effects and the influence over MCRs are described and critically discussed in this Perspective.