Direct transformation of-alkane into all-conjugated polyene via cascade dehydrogenation

Selective C(sp$^{3}$) −H activation is of fundamental importance in processing alkane feedstocks to produce high-value-added chemical products. By virtue of an on-surface synthesis strategy, we report selective cascade dehydrogenation of n-alkane molecules under surface constraints, which yields monodispersed all-trans conjugated polyenes with unprecedented length controllability. We are also able to demonstrate the generality of this concept for alkyl-substituted molecules with programmable lengths and diverse functionalities, and more importantly its promising potential in molecular wiring

Direct transformation of n-alkane into all-trans conjugated polyene via cascade dehydrogenation

Selective C(sp(3))-H activation is of fundamental importance in processing alkane feedstocks to produce high-value-added chemical products. By virtue of an on-surface synthesis strategy, we report selective cascade dehydrogenation of n-alkane molecules under surface constraints, which yields monodispersed all-trans conjugated polyenes with unprecedented length controllability. We are also able to demonstrate the generality of this concept for alkyl-substituted molecules with programmable lengths and diverse functionalities, and more importantly its promising potential in molecular wiring.Funding Agencies|Ministry of Science and Technology of the Peoples Republic of ChinaMinistry of Science and Technology, China [2017YFA0205000, 2017YFA0205002]; National Natural Science Foundation of ChinaNational Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) [21790053, 51821002]; Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science Technology; Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions (PAPD); 111 ProjectMinistry of Education, China - 111 Project; German Research FoundationGerman Research Foundation (DFG) [392178740, 426888090]</p