Serna Merino, Pedro ManuelCorma Canós, Avelino2016-04-182016-04-182014-060021-9517https://riunet.upv.es/handle/10251/62722[EN] Small gold nanoparticles in the presence of O2 are able to cleave CAH bonds of non-activated arenes and facilitate catalytic formation of biaryls under mild conditions. This procedure avoids the common requirement of iodine, acids, bases, and/or other stoichiometrical additives to accomplish multiple turnovers and results in a zero-waste synthetic process. A number of unactivated arenes such as benzene, toluene, p-xylene, nitrobenzene, chlorobenzene, or phenol are selectively converted to the corresponding biaryls, with accumulated turnover numbers greater than 600. Kinetic measurements, in combination with IR, HRTEM, and STEM-HAADF data, suggest that the reaction takes place on gold atoms that are metallic in character, with the highest CAC bond formation rate provided by gold nanoparticles of approximately 3 nm of diameter. A radical-free reaction mechanism is postulated on the basis of the kinetic measurements. The results represent a first stone for the waste-free preparation of biaryls using supported gold catalysts.Reserva de todos los derechosGold catalysisSupported gold nanoparticlesC-C bond formationWaste-free formation of biarylsActivation of non-activated arenesQUIMICA ORGANICAArtículo10.1016/j.jcat.2014.04.004Cerrado1090-2694