EARTH.COM - or years, one rule in chemistry class seemed simple: certain high-energy carbon species, like vitamin B1, fall apart in water. That’s why many reactions take place in specialized organic solvents instead of the most common solvent on Earth.
A new study puts a crack in that rule. It shows that a reactive carbon species can persist in water long enough to be directly observed and clearly described.
Water is common, safe, cheap, and central to life. If reactive carbon chemistry can run in water, we get a clearer picture of how some enzymes might work inside cells and a cleaner path for industry to make useful molecules.
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“This is the first time anyone has been able to observe a stable carbene in water,” said Vincent Lavallo, a professor of chemistry at UC Riverside and corresponding author of the paper.
“People thought this was a crazy idea. But it turns out, Breslow was right.”