Matteo Alberti
Matteo Alberti
Matteo Alberti was born in Milan, Italy in 1998. He received his master’s degree in chemical sciences in 2022 at the University of Milan, with a thesis on the catalytic cycloaddition of carbon dioxide to aziridines and the dimerization of aziridines. He is currently a PhD fellow in Chemistry under the supervision of prof. Caselli and he is working on the development of catalytic systems involving nitrene transfers on olefins to yield aziridines.
Publications
2026
6.
Alberti, Matteo; Rossi, Greta; Boucherabine, Djihed; Cargnoni, Fausto; Trioni, Mario Italo; Taini, Giulia; Zakutna, Dominika; Gentilin, Arianna; Đorđević, Luka; Sartorel, Andrea; Caselli, Alessandro
Photoactive Fe(
In: Dalton Trans., 2026, ISSN: 1477-9234.
@article{Alberti2026,
title = {Photoactive Fe(
iii
) pyclen complexes for light-driven aerobic oxidation of
\textit{p}
-xylene},
author = {Matteo Alberti and Greta Rossi and Djihed Boucherabine and Fausto Cargnoni and Mario Italo Trioni and Giulia Taini and Dominika Zakutna and Arianna Gentilin and Luka Đorđević and Andrea Sartorel and Alessandro Caselli},
doi = {10.1039/d5dt02534f},
issn = {1477-9234},
year = {2026},
date = {2026-00-00},
journal = {Dalton Trans.},
publisher = {Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC)},
abstract = {
We report the photochemical activity of iron coordination complexes with pyclen and bromide ligands, in generating bromine radicals, exploited for the aerobic oxidation of
p
-xylene under visible light.
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
We report the photochemical activity of iron coordination complexes with pyclen and bromide ligands, in generating bromine radicals, exploited for the aerobic oxidation of
-xylene under visible light.
2025
5.
Alberti, Matteo; Gianelli, Marta; Boucherabine, Djihed; Recchia, Sandro; Caselli, Alessandro
Additive‐Free Synthesis of Cyclic Carbamates From Aziridines and CO2 Catalyzed by IER Supported Iron(III) Halides Journal Article
In: ChemCatChem, 2025, ISSN: 1867-3899.
@article{Alberti2025,
title = {Additive‐Free Synthesis of Cyclic Carbamates From Aziridines and CO_{2} Catalyzed by IER Supported Iron(III) Halides},
author = {Matteo Alberti and Marta Gianelli and Djihed Boucherabine and Sandro Recchia and Alessandro Caselli},
doi = {10.1002/cctc.202500710},
issn = {1867-3899},
year = {2025},
date = {2025-07-24},
journal = {ChemCatChem},
publisher = {Wiley},
abstract = {Abstract The coupling of CO2 with aziridines offers an efficient, 100% atom‐economic route to synthesize high‐value cyclic carbamates. In this study, we present a heterogeneous catalytic system based on readily available iron(III) metallates supported on commercially available ion‐exchange resins (IERs) for the selective synthesis of 1,3‐oxazolidin‐2‐ones. Two polystyrene‐based IERs with different porosities, Amberlyst™ 26‐Cl (A26‐Cl, macroreticular) and Amberlite™ IRA‐400‐Cl (IRA400‐Cl, microporous) were evaluated. The results reveal a synergistic interaction between the iron metallate and the resin support, with the A26‐[FeCl3 Br] catalyst outperforming the homogeneous counterpart under mild conditions (25 °C, CO2 pressure = 0.8 MPa, 2 h), achieving up to >99% yield of the target oxazolidinone. A Design of Experiments (DoE) approach was applied to optimize reaction parameters, and the system's versatility was confirmed using aziridines with different substitution patterns. Overall, this work presents a scalable (up to 1 g) and cost‐effective method for CO2 valorization into cyclic carbamates, highlighting experimentally the combined effect of polystyrene supports and ammonium ferrate active species. },
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
2024
4.
Alberti, Matteo; Gianelli, Marta; Panza, Nicola; Zákutná, Dominika; Matulková, Irena; Caselli, Alessandro
In: European Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, vol. 27, no. 36, pp. e202400494, 2024.
@article{nokey,
title = {Iron and Zinc Metallates Supported on Ion Exchange Resins: Synergistic Catalysts for the Solvent-Free Cyclic Carbonate Synthesis from Epoxides and CO₂},
author = {Matteo Alberti and Marta Gianelli and Nicola Panza and Dominika Zákutná and Irena Matulková and Alessandro Caselli},
doi = {10.1002/ejic.202400494},
year = {2024},
date = {2024-12-24},
urldate = {2024-12-24},
journal = {European Journal of Inorganic Chemistry},
volume = {27},
number = {36},
pages = {e202400494},
abstract = {Despite extensive research into developing efficient and environmentally friendly catalysts for converting CO2 over the last decade, the search for a robust and cost-effective catalytic system is ongoing. This study describes developing and applying a new catalytic system using inexpensive ferrate and zincate anions immobilized on easily available commercial ion exchange resins (IER) to produce cyclic carbonates from CO2 with high efficiency and low cost. Two polystyrene-based anion exchange resins, AmberlystTM A26-Cl (A26-Cl) and AmberliteTM IRA-400-Cl (IRA400-Cl), were compared. The results demonstrated the catalysts’ remarkable activity under mild conditions and demonstrated the synergistic effect between the polystyrene support and the active ammonium metallates, presenting a scalable, eco-friendly method for cyclic carbonate production using waste CO2. A Design of Experiment (DoE) approach was implemented to optimize the catalytic cycloaddition of CO2. The reaction scale-up to produce a 5 g batch of propylene oxide and conducting recycling tests demonstrated that the catalyst retained its activity over four cycles. The research also explored the use of various epoxides and found that terminal epoxides produced very good yields. In summary, this study introduces a cost-effective, scalable method for converting CO2 into valuable cyclic carbonates, leveraging the synergistic effects of polystyrene supports and active ammonium metallates.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
Despite extensive research into developing efficient and environmentally friendly catalysts for converting CO2 over the last decade, the search for a robust and cost-effective catalytic system is ongoing. This study describes developing and applying a new catalytic system using inexpensive ferrate and zincate anions immobilized on easily available commercial ion exchange resins (IER) to produce cyclic carbonates from CO2 with high efficiency and low cost. Two polystyrene-based anion exchange resins, AmberlystTM A26-Cl (A26-Cl) and AmberliteTM IRA-400-Cl (IRA400-Cl), were compared. The results demonstrated the catalysts’ remarkable activity under mild conditions and demonstrated the synergistic effect between the polystyrene support and the active ammonium metallates, presenting a scalable, eco-friendly method for cyclic carbonate production using waste CO2. A Design of Experiment (DoE) approach was implemented to optimize the catalytic cycloaddition of CO2. The reaction scale-up to produce a 5 g batch of propylene oxide and conducting recycling tests demonstrated that the catalyst retained its activity over four cycles. The research also explored the use of various epoxides and found that terminal epoxides produced very good yields. In summary, this study introduces a cost-effective, scalable method for converting CO2 into valuable cyclic carbonates, leveraging the synergistic effects of polystyrene supports and active ammonium metallates.
3.
Alberti, Matteo; Dariol, Andrea; Panza, Nicola; Abbiati, Giorgio; Caselli, Alessandro
Ammonium Zincates as Catalysts for the Microwave-Enhanced Synthesis of Symmetric Piperazines by Regioselective Opening of Aziridines Journal Article
In: Chemistry – An Asian Journal, vol. 19, no. 22, pp. e202400688, 2024.
@article{https://doi.org/10.1002/asia.202400688,
title = {Ammonium Zincates as Catalysts for the Microwave-Enhanced Synthesis of Symmetric Piperazines by Regioselective Opening of Aziridines},
author = {Matteo Alberti and Andrea Dariol and Nicola Panza and Giorgio Abbiati and Alessandro Caselli},
url = {https://aces.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/asia.202400688},
doi = {https://doi.org/10.1002/asia.202400688},
year = {2024},
date = {2024-01-01},
journal = {Chemistry – An Asian Journal},
volume = {19},
number = {22},
pages = {e202400688},
abstract = {Abstract 2,5-disubstituted N,N’-alkylpiperazines represent an interesting target in organic synthesis both for pharmaceutical or agrochemical applications and as a promising class of ligands in coordination chemistry. We report here a microwave-enhanced synthesis of these compounds starting from non-activated N-alkyl aziridines in the presence of catalytic amounts of simple ammonium metallates. A remarkable TOF of 2787.9 h−1 has been observed in the case of [TBA]2[ZnI4] as the catalyst (catalyst loading 0.1 mol %) and with an almost complete selectivity (up to 97 %) in favor of both diastereoisomers (meso and chiral form) of the target 2,5-disubstituted piperazines, obtained in 1 : 1 ratio. The two isomers are easily separated, because the meso form precipitates in pure from the reaction crude. A stereochemical investigation and the unprecedented isolation of 2,6-disubstituted N,N’-alkylpiperazines allowed us to shed light on the reaction mechanism.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
Abstract 2,5-disubstituted N,N’-alkylpiperazines represent an interesting target in organic synthesis both for pharmaceutical or agrochemical applications and as a promising class of ligands in coordination chemistry. We report here a microwave-enhanced synthesis of these compounds starting from non-activated N-alkyl aziridines in the presence of catalytic amounts of simple ammonium metallates. A remarkable TOF of 2787.9 h−1 has been observed in the case of [TBA]2[ZnI4] as the catalyst (catalyst loading 0.1 mol %) and with an almost complete selectivity (up to 97 %) in favor of both diastereoisomers (meso and chiral form) of the target 2,5-disubstituted piperazines, obtained in 1 : 1 ratio. The two isomers are easily separated, because the meso form precipitates in pure from the reaction crude. A stereochemical investigation and the unprecedented isolation of 2,6-disubstituted N,N’-alkylpiperazines allowed us to shed light on the reaction mechanism.
2022
2.
Panza, N.; Alberti, M.; Galiè, S.; Damiano, C.; Cargnoni, F.; Trioni, M. Italo; Caselli, A.
Ammonium Ferrate-Catalyzed Cycloaddition of CO2 to Aziridines for the Synthesis of 1,3-Oxazolidin-2-ones Journal Article
In: European Journal of Organic Chemistry, vol. 2022, no. 40, 2022, ISSN: 1434193X.
@article{Panza2022,
title = {Ammonium Ferrate-Catalyzed Cycloaddition of CO2 to Aziridines for the Synthesis of 1,3-Oxazolidin-2-ones},
author = {N. Panza and M. Alberti and S. Galiè and C. Damiano and F. Cargnoni and M. Italo Trioni and A. Caselli},
url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85140709299&doi=10.1002%2fejoc.202200908&partnerID=40&md5=1886cd498ff54ddf13b2c3c03fec5e2c},
doi = {10.1002/ejoc.202200908},
issn = {1434193X},
year = {2022},
date = {2022-01-01},
journal = {European Journal of Organic Chemistry},
volume = {2022},
number = {40},
publisher = {John Wiley and Sons Inc},
abstract = {Simple ammonium ferrates are competent catalysts for the CO2 coupling with aziridines to yield 5-substituted 1,3-oxazolidin-2-ones. Good yields with remarkable selectivity are obtained under mild reaction conditions, room temperature, and atmospheric CO2 pressure, especially for non-hindered N-alkyl, N-benzyl and N-allyl aziridines, without the need of any co-catalyst. To shed light on the reaction mechanism, an extensive set of theoretical calculations has been carried out. A viable reaction mechanism involving just one ferrate molecule and where the rate determining step is the 1,3-oxazolidin-2-one ring closure has been found, and the corresponding barrier is compatible with the experimental conditions tested in this study. © 2022 The Authors. European Journal of Organic Chemistry published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
Simple ammonium ferrates are competent catalysts for the CO2 coupling with aziridines to yield 5-substituted 1,3-oxazolidin-2-ones. Good yields with remarkable selectivity are obtained under mild reaction conditions, room temperature, and atmospheric CO2 pressure, especially for non-hindered N-alkyl, N-benzyl and N-allyl aziridines, without the need of any co-catalyst. To shed light on the reaction mechanism, an extensive set of theoretical calculations has been carried out. A viable reaction mechanism involving just one ferrate molecule and where the rate determining step is the 1,3-oxazolidin-2-one ring closure has been found, and the corresponding barrier is compatible with the experimental conditions tested in this study. © 2022 The Authors. European Journal of Organic Chemistry published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.
1.
Panza, N.; Alberti, M.; Damiano, C.; Caselli, A.
Ammonium zincates as suitable catalyst for the room temperature cycloaddition of CO2 to epoxides Journal Article
In: Frontiers in Catalysis, vol. 2, 2022, ISSN: 2673-7841.
@article{10.3389/fctls.2022.991270,
title = {Ammonium zincates as suitable catalyst for the room temperature cycloaddition of CO2 to epoxides},
author = {N. Panza and M. Alberti and C. Damiano and A. Caselli},
url = {https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fctls.2022.991270},
doi = {10.3389/fctls.2022.991270},
issn = {2673-7841},
year = {2022},
date = {2022-01-01},
urldate = {2022-01-01},
journal = {Frontiers in Catalysis},
volume = {2},
abstract = {We have recently shown that simple ammonium ferrates are competent catalyst for the cycloaddition reaction of CO_{2} to epoxides under moderate reaction conditions (T = 100°C, P(CO_{2}) = 0.8 MPa). We report here that ammonium zincates of general formulae [TBA]_{2} [ZnX_{4}] (TBA = tetrabutylammonium), simply obtained by treating an ethanolic solution of an appropriate zinc(II) salt with two equivalents of tetrabutylammonium halides, outperform ammonium ferrates in the synthesis of cyclic carbonates under milder reaction conditions (room temperature and atmospheric CO_{2} pressure). Using [TBA]_{2}[ZnBr_{4}] complex as homogeneous catalyst at 100°C and P(CO_{2}) = 0.8 MPa a 52% conversion of styrene oxide with complete selectivity in styrene carbonate in just 15 min was observed, corresponding to a Turnover frequency (TOF) of 416 h^{−1}. The same catalyst proved to be very active even at room temperature and atmospheric or very moderate CO_{2} pressures (0.2 MPa), with a quite broad range of substrates, especially in the case of terminal epoxides, with high selectivity towards cyclic carbonate products. The difference in reactivity of terminal and internal epoxides could be exploited using 4-vinylcyclohexene dioxide, where the endocyclic epoxide remained untouched when reacted at room temperature and the formation of the di-carbonate product was observed only at harsher conditions. A multigram scale conversion of propylene oxide was achieved (46 mmol) and the catalyst also proved to be recyclable (3 cycles) by distillation of the product and subsequent addition of fresh reagent, maintaining high conversion values and complete selectivity for propylene carbonate. This simple zinc-based catalytic system, which outperform the recently reported iron-based one by working at much milder conditions, could represent a valuable prospect in both laboratory and industrial scale, combining an inherent cheapness and synthetic easiness that should be deeply considered when the goal is to give value to a waste product as CO_{2}.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
We have recently shown that simple ammonium ferrates are competent catalyst for the cycloaddition reaction of CO2 to epoxides under moderate reaction conditions (T = 100°C, P(CO2) = 0.8 MPa). We report here that ammonium zincates of general formulae [TBA]2 [ZnX4] (TBA = tetrabutylammonium), simply obtained by treating an ethanolic solution of an appropriate zinc(II) salt with two equivalents of tetrabutylammonium halides, outperform ammonium ferrates in the synthesis of cyclic carbonates under milder reaction conditions (room temperature and atmospheric CO2 pressure). Using [TBA]2[ZnBr4] complex as homogeneous catalyst at 100°C and P(CO2) = 0.8 MPa a 52% conversion of styrene oxide with complete selectivity in styrene carbonate in just 15 min was observed, corresponding to a Turnover frequency (TOF) of 416 h−1. The same catalyst proved to be very active even at room temperature and atmospheric or very moderate CO2 pressures (0.2 MPa), with a quite broad range of substrates, especially in the case of terminal epoxides, with high selectivity towards cyclic carbonate products. The difference in reactivity of terminal and internal epoxides could be exploited using 4-vinylcyclohexene dioxide, where the endocyclic epoxide remained untouched when reacted at room temperature and the formation of the di-carbonate product was observed only at harsher conditions. A multigram scale conversion of propylene oxide was achieved (46 mmol) and the catalyst also proved to be recyclable (3 cycles) by distillation of the product and subsequent addition of fresh reagent, maintaining high conversion values and complete selectivity for propylene carbonate. This simple zinc-based catalytic system, which outperform the recently reported iron-based one by working at much milder conditions, could represent a valuable prospect in both laboratory and industrial scale, combining an inherent cheapness and synthetic easiness that should be deeply considered when the goal is to give value to a waste product as CO2.