Alice C

It’s just that without you, even Paris doesn’t make sense I looked for you in every street in Paris, but I just can’t seem to find you. I even ran into your brother the other day – he’s still making drinks at that stylish little restaurant on Rue Pigalle, but he didn’t say anything about you. I’ve been retracing the paths we used to walk, in the vain hope that something will remind me why I came to this city in the first place. But I don’t see you, anywhere.

Since its first disclosure more than 70 years ago, the Wittig reaction has become a preferred method for the synthesis of alkenes in organic chemistry. (1) Since then it has been extensively studied from a mechanistic perspective and improved upon from a practical one. (2) A particularly sought practical improvement is the exclusion of organic solvent(s) from the reaction medium, promoting an environmentally sustainable prospect for a Wittig reaction in water (Figure 1a).

Since its first disclosure more than 70 years ago, the Wittig reaction has become a preferred method for the synthesis of alkenes in organic chemistry. (1) Since then it has been extensively studied from a mechanistic perspective and improved upon from a practical one. (2) A particularly sought practical improvement is the exclusion of organic solvent(s) from the reaction medium, promoting an environmentally sustainable prospect for a Wittig reaction in water (Figure 1a).