Our first work on photochemical deracemization has been published in JACS—congratulations to Xiaoyu Yan! 

This project marked the inception of our research endeavors. The concept, which involves using non-selective hydrogen atom abstraction (HAA) followed by enantioselective hydrogen atom donation (HAD) to achieve deracemization, may seem straightforward, but it took us nearly four years to bring it to fruition. One significant challenge we faced was the reactivity of the products under the reaction conditions.

Xiaoyu displayed remarkable persistence and meticulousness, ultimately discovering a crucial additive that facilitated both the HAA and HAD steps. Way to go, Xiaoyu! 

For details, please check our manuscript here.