Surfactant solutions provide a special class of media for conducting chemical reactions. The nanostructuring of reaction media provides an ideal opportunity for tuning the selectivity of chemical reactions where a multiplicity of reaction products is possible. The hydrophilicity/ hydrophobicity of the medium varies drastically within a short distance in micelles and microemulsion droplets and the resultant orientation of molecules solubilised by these structures. The orientation coupled with the high localised concentration of reagent has resulted in changing the selectivity of ortho-chlorination of phenol by four folds, and substituted phenols by three folds. Deactivated aromatic molecules such as benzoic acid can also benefit with this technique and 75% meta-chlorination of benzoic acid could be altered to 85% ortho-chlorination. Heck reaction, Suzuki reaction and Sonogashira reactions have also benefited from surfactant solution as media although not through micellar catalysis.

Nanostructured aqueous solutions as green and efficient reaction media

248th National Meeting (2014)

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