Molecular Fire Quencher: Cage-shaped molecular assemblies can regulate the reactivity of smaller molecules trapped within them. Mal et al. (p. 1697 ) extend this approach to enable the protection of elemental white phosphorus (P ₄ ), a substance that rapidly ignites on contact with oxygen. The tetrahedral cages self-assemble in aqueous solution through coordination of six ligands to four iron ions, and efficiently capture phosphorus from a suspension. The water-soluble host-guest constructs were stable in air for at least 4 months, but released intact P ₄ rapidly on displacement by added benzene.

With the growing interest in renewable energy and global warming, it is important to minimize the usage of hazardous chemicals in both academic and industrial research, elimination of waste, and possibly recycle them to obtain better results in greener fashion. The studies under the area of mechanochemistry which cover the grinding chemistry to ball milling, sonication, etc. are certainly of interest to the researchers working on the development of green methodologies. In this review, a collection of examples on recent developments in organic bond formation reactions like carbon–carbon (C–C), carbon–nitrogen (C–N), carbon–oxygen (C–O), carbon–halogen (C–X), etc. is documented. Mechanochemical syntheses of heterocyclic rings, multicomponent reactions and organometallic molecules including their catalytic applications are also highlighted.