Cooking oils work as solvents for metal-catalysed reactions

A photo showing a selection of oils

Source: © Ashot Gevorgyan/UiT The Arctic University of Norway

Suzuki–Miyaura, Hiyama, Stille, Sonogashira and Heck cross-couplings shown to proceed with quantitative yields in certain vegetable oils, fish oil, butter and waxes

Scientists in Norway have shown that vegetable oils and related lipids can replace conventional organic solvents in a variety of homogenous metal-catalysed reactions.