Inorganic catalysts, also known as heterogeneous catalysts, are supported metals that emulate the exquisite function of Nature′s catalysts: enzymes. Through absorption, the metal binds to a solid. During this process, it is important to ensure that there are sufficient active sites available for the reactants to interact with. Porous materials, typically carbon, silica, or alumina, are chosen as supporting materials due to their large surface areas. As the surface area increases, so does the number of active sites.

Heterogeneous catalysts play a key role in hydrogenation and cross-coupling reactions in industry and academia. Because these catalysts occupy a different phase than the other starting materials and the desired compound (once the reaction is complete), they are easier to remove and recycle. This has made inorganic catalysts extremely valuable for industrial and bulk procedures. However, unlike the organocatalysts and ligands, heterogeneous catalysts aren’t easily optimized.

Within the field of heterogeneous catalysis, there are several classes of transformations that have become a mainstay in the toolkit of synthetic and increasingly non-synthetic chemists alike. These methods have taken on the names of the laboratories from which they have been developed and include but are not limited to: Stille, Buchwald–Hartwig, Negishi, Heck, Miyaura–Suzuki, and Sonogashira. We offer an unmatched portfolio of inorganic catalysts, such as platinum, palladium, ruthenium, or rhodium on carbon, silica, or calcium carbonate to support all of your research application needs.