Covalent immobilization of N-heterocyclic carbenes on pristine carbon substrates: from nanoscale characterization to bulk catalysis

To control the synthesis of designer catalysts on graphitic materials up to the nanometer scale, methods should be provided that combine both nanoscale characterization and bulk scale experiments. This work reports the grafting of N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC)-type catalysts on graphite, both at nanometer and bulk scale, as it allows increased insights into the nature of the immobilized catalysts. High-resolution on-surface characterization techniques are used to gain nanoscale insights in the production of covalently functionalized graphene nanoplatelets as bulk catalysts for benzoin condensation.