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Abstract Photocatalytic carboxylation of alkenes with CO2 is a promising and sustainable strategy to synthesize high value-added carboxylic acids. However, it is challenging and rarely investigated for unactivated alkenes due to their low reactivities. Herein, we report a visible-light photoredox-catalyzed arylcarboxylation of unactivated alkenes with CO2, delivering a variety of tetrahydronaphthalen-1-ylacetic acids, indan-1-ylacetic acids, indolin-3-ylacetic acids, chroman-4-ylacetic acids and thiochroman-4-ylacetic acids in moderate-to-good yields. This reaction features high chemo- and regio-selectivities, mild reaction conditions (1 atm, room temperature), broad substrate scope, good functional group compatibility, easy scalability and facile derivatization of products. Mechanistic studies indicate that in situ generation of carbon dioxide radical anion and following radical addition to unactivated alkenes might be involved in the process.

Electrochemistry is a promising approach to make existing chemical protocols milder, but many simple transformations of feedstocks are still out of reach. Here, the authors transform unactivated aryl and alkyl (pseudo)halides into carboxylic acids, via nickel catalysis and electricity, using atmospheric CO2 as the carbon source.

Compounds bearing a carbonyl group, such as aldehydes and ketones, are important industrial chemicals and widespread in pharmaceuticals and natural products. Here, the authors report a strategy for visible-light photoredox-catalyzed umpolung carboxylation of diverse carbonyl compounds with CO2, to generate valuable α-hydroxycarboxylic acids.

Catalytic reductive coupling of two electrophiles and one C = C bond is usually performed by two electron transfer metal catalysis. Herein, the authors show a visible light photoredox-catalyzed successive single electron transfer leading to dearomative arylcarboxylation of indoles with CO2 and generating indoline-3-carboxylic acids.

Phosphonyl and carboxyl groups are valuable functional groups, however their simultaneous incorporation via catalytic difunctionalization of alkenes has not been realized yet. Here the authors report the phosphonocarboxylation of alkenes with CO2 via visible-light photoredox catalysis.