Advances in Organic Photoredox Catalysis
A special issue of Catalysts (ISSN 2073-4344). This special issue belongs to the section "Photocatalysis".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2026 | Viewed by 103
Special Issue Editors
Interests: organometallic catalysis in support of main group bond formation, main group catalysts; E-E and E-C bond formation; photocatalysis; mechanism
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Organic photoredox catalysis has emerged as one of the most powerful and rapidly evolving strategies in modern synthetic chemistry. By utilizing visible light to promote single-electron transfer processes, photoredox catalysis enables the generation of highly reactive radical intermediates under mild and environmentally benign conditions. Over the past decade, these approaches have dramatically expanded the repertoire of chemical transformations available to synthetic chemists, enabling the efficient construction of C–C and C–heteroatom bonds while offering new opportunities for the late-stage functionalization of complex molecules.
Early advances in photoredox catalysis largely relied on transition metal photocatalysts, particularly ruthenium and iridium polypyridyl complexes, which exhibit long excited-state lifetimes and tunable redox potentials. More recently, significant efforts have focused on the development of metal-free organic photocatalysts, semiconductor materials, and photocatalytic systems based on earth-abundant elements. These developments not only broaden the scope of photoredox reactions but also address important challenges related to sustainability and scalability.
A particularly important direction in the field is the integration of photoredox catalysis with other catalytic modes, including transition metal catalysis, organocatalysis, and enzymatic catalysis. Such dual-catalytic platforms have unlocked new reaction pathways and enabled unprecedented bond-forming transformations. In parallel, advances in mechanistic understanding, reactor design, and continuous-flow photochemistry are facilitating the translation of photoredox methods from academic laboratories to practical applications in pharmaceutical, materials, and energy-related research.
This Special Issue aims to highlight recent advances and emerging opportunities in organic photoredox catalysis, including the design of new photocatalysts, mechanistic insights into light-driven transformations, and innovative synthetic methodologies enabled by photoredox processes. Contributions that explore sustainable catalytic strategies, earth-abundant catalytic systems, and interdisciplinary approaches at the interface of photochemistry and catalysis are particularly encouraged.
Prof. Dr. Rory Waterman
Dr. Yixiong Lin
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Catalysts is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- visible light photocatalysis
- radical chemistry
- sustainable catalysis
- dual catalysis
- organic photoredox catalysis
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