Chemistry
The Role of Lewis Acid Catalysis in Diels-Alder Cycloadditions
Quick fact
Adding a Lewis acid like aluminum chloride or boron trifluoride can lower the activation energy of a Diels-Alder reaction by up to 10 kcal/mol, corresponding to a rate increase of over a thousand-fold at room temperature, while simultaneously improving the endo/exo selectivity.
Why this is interesting
You've probably seen organic reactions that need high temperatures and long hours to proceed. But what if a simple additive could make one of the most useful carbon-carbon bond-forming reactions happen at room temperature—and with better control over the product?