Optimization and Mechanistic Studies of the Electrochemical Dimerization of Primary Alkyl‐Bromides and Benzylic Chlorides Utilizing a Nickel(II)/Terpyridine Catalytic System
Electrochemical reductive homo‐coupling of alkyl halides provides a sustainable alternative to metal‐powder‐based protocols. We report a nickel‐catalyzed system operating under mild electroreductive conditions that delivers C(sp 3 )–C(sp 3 ) dimers efficiently using either a sacrificial anode or a metal‐free graphite/DIPEA setup. Various Ni(II) precursors combined with terpyridine ligand proved effective, enabling the dimerization of a range of primary alkyl halides and benzylic substrates. Electrochemical analysis highlights the role of the initial reduction of the Ni(II) precatalyst and reveals a strong influence of the counter‐anion on nickel speciation. In particular, lithium halides enhance reactivity by altering the coordination environment of nickel. These findings establish a practical and tunable platform for electrochemical dimerization and clarify how ligand and salt effects govern catalytic efficiency.
Authors
- Maxime R. Vitale (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6740-2472)
- Fabien Serpier
- Pierre‐Georges Echeverria (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9938-5083)
- M Roux
- Laurence Grimaud (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3904-1822)
- Clément Jacob (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0004-8691-6788)
- Nicolas Jacob
- Gianluca Weyckmans Mele
- Maxime Devuyst (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0007-6133-146X)
- Mokhtar Ben Ghanem
- Nicolas Oppé
- Iurii Dovgaliuk (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1997-4748)
- Damien Dewez
Institutions
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
- Chimie ParisTech - PSL (FR)
- Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (FR)
- École Normale Supérieure - PSL (FR)
- Sorbonne Université (FR)
- Office National des Forêts (FR)
- Novadip (Belgium) (BE)
- ESPCI Paris (FR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- ChemPhysChem
- Published
- 2026-06-18
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1002/cphc.70442
- Primary Topic
- Radical Photochemical Reactions
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00