Selective methane oxidation by molecular iron catalysts in aqueous medium

Nature, Published online: 05 April 2023; doi:10.1038/s41586-023-05821-2

Methane can be oxidized to methanol using N-heterocyclic carbene-ligated FeII complexes, in which the hydrophobic cavity captures the methane substrate from an aqueous solution and releases the hydrophilic methanol product back into the solution.