Research Overview

It was with Friedrich Wöhler that synthetic organic chemistry became a new alias of the heresy that could  disprove the clichéd notion of the Vitalism Theory - where creation of all organic molecules was presumed to be from life itself. Since then, organic chemistry rose to a height of divine prowess as naturally important molecules could be independently prepared in an artificial setting within a chemical lab. Such a drastic development was further expedited by the meteoric emergence of catalytic chemistry. In this regard, site selective C-H activation has emerged as a most economical and efficient technology, that direct fascinating  chemical transformations at phenomenal success rates with an impressive array of a high order of regio and chemo selectivity under ambient conditions.

At IIT Bombay, we specialize in the regioselective transformation of C-X bonds via a plethora of functionalization/defunctionalization pathways through metal catalyzed chemical processes. Our group currently focuses on

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1. Remote C-H Functionalization: Site selective functionalization of distal C–H bonds in both aromatic and aliphatic systems 

2. Bioinspired Catalysis: Mimicking the enzymatic active site and thus their functions

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3. Heterocyclic Chemistry: Metal mediated diverse method development for pharmaceuticals 

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4. Quantum Dots (QD) Photoredox Catalysis: Development of recyclable heterogenous photocatalytic system 

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5.  Lignin Valorization: Improving Lignin Processing by Catalysis

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6. Metal Mediated Defunctionalization: Removal of functional groups from organic molecules 

Latest Group News

Congratulations Dr. Sandeep Pimparkar and Dr. Uttam Dutta for getting the doctorate, Cheers!

Our recent paper on six and seven-membered lactone formation published in Chemical Science. To know about the project without much technical jargons Check out this

Read a special interview of Prof. Maiti on the occasion of 10 years of Chemical Science