Microwave irradiation for organic synthesis

The field of organic chemistry is a colossal branch of chemistry dealing with synthesis, which is one of the subdisciplines of the former, resulting in simple to complex molecules. The evolution of organic chemistry, starting with extraction from plant resources, distillation, and conventional methods to microwave synthesis, as an approach to green chemistry, has been a tremendous breakthrough in the scientific world. Most scientists across the world aim to adopt environmentally friendly processes to accomplish their synthesis; one such favoured approach is microwave irradiation. Since its introduction, the microwave irradiation technique has been a transformational change and is exploited by researchers for its reduced energy consumption, quick reaction span, better yields and no or less solvent in some cases, which makes it an ideal route for green synthesis. This technique makes the synthesis of organic molecules with stereochemistry simpler and easier. A number of one-pot multicomponent reactions can be achieved via microwave synthesis, and the resulting outcome can be applied in medicine and pharmaceuticals. Nevertheless, its shortcomings are infeasible to monitor the reaction, expensive instrumentation and poor scalability in large quantities. This chapter discusses the organic synthesis of various reactions under microwave irradiation and its pros and cons.