Breakthrough results from a School of Chemistry lab reveal a new method for stitching together toxic carbon monoxide molecules to make perfume molecules using unprecedented catalysis with sustainable elements. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is one of the most infamous molecules in the public consciousness however much less thought has been given to its toxic sibling, carbon monoxide (CO). The molecule is important in industry, used in a wide variety of crucial processes from the production of alcohol molecules to sustainable aviation fuels. Existing reactions which convert CO into useful molecules typically use catalysts based on environmentally and financially costly transition-metal elements such as rhodium. Results from the Kong lab have upended this near century-old paradigm with a magnesium catalyst that stitches CO into an α-hydroxyketone compound – a class of molecules used in the perfume industry. Moreover, the groundbreaking catalyst incorporates two catenated CO molecules into the product with selectivity, a transformation that is challenging for transition metals. The results are a key proof of principle that stitching CO molecules together with selectivity is possible and lay the groundwork for development of more complicated reactions turning CO into value added compounds. Methodology from this study should enable more sustainable synthesis of multi-carbon compounds from simple feedstocks. The study was recently published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society. The molecules we can make currently, admittedly, do not smell particular nice – yeasty is a word that comes to mind – however with this key proof-of-concept paper under our belt I can’t wait to see what other molecules we might be able to make with our approach! The work was supported by the University of Edinburgh Chancellor’s Fellowship and I’m incredibly grateful to the university for having the opportunity to explore my own ideas. Dr Richard Kong Chancellor’s Fellow Read the paper, "Catalytic CO Homologation at Magnesium", in Journal of the Ame… Tags Research This article was published on Wednesday 24 June 2026
