Copper‑oxygen adducts as reactive species for C-H bond activation and oxygen reduction/evolution reactions.
A. Suresh, L. Wojcik, S. Birara, M. Gunther, K. Youssef, S. Sutradhar, H. Jamet, A. Thibon-Pourret, A. J. Simaan,* C. Belle,* M. Réglier,* N. Le Poul.* Coord. Chem. Rev. 2026, in press. DOI: 10.1016/j.ccr.2026.218032

This review reports on recent research on the importance of bioinorganic synthetic copper–oxygen species for energy and environment fundamental reactions. After a short introduction recalling the general and important aspects of the copper oxygen chemistry, the article describes the last discoveries in C-H bond activation, including Hydrogen Atom Abstraction (HAA) and Oxygen atom Transfer (OAT) reactions, catalyzed by synthetic models of copper oxygenases/oxidases. The review then focuses on recent fundamental and applied studies in the fields of the Oxygen Reduction Reaction (ORR) and Oxygen Evolution Reaction (OER) that are electrocatalyzed by homogenous or supported molecular copper complexes. Further discussion emphasizes the involvement of molecular copper‑oxygen adducts in aldehyde deformylation, as well as recent progress in the field of artificial copper enzymes.