Urea is a key molecule in the search for the origin of life and a basic chemical produced in large quantities by industry. Its formation from ammonia and carbon dioxide requires either high pressures and temperatures or, under milder conditions, catalysts or additional reagents. In this study, we observed the spontaneous formation of urea under ambient conditions from ammonia and carbon dioxide in the surface layer of aqueous droplets. Single, optically trapped droplets were probed by using Raman bands as markers. We found the surface layer to act like a microscopic flow reactor, with chemical gradients providing access to unconventional reaction pathways. This observation revealed a general mechanistic scheme for distinctive droplet chemistry. Interfacial chemistry is a possible nonenergetic route for urea formation under prebiotic conditions.

High-valent Fe(IV)-oxo species have been found to be key oxidizing intermediates in the mechanisms of mononuclear iron heme and non-heme enzymes that can functionalize strong C–H bonds. Biomimetic Fe(IV)-oxo molecular complexes have been successfully synthesized and characterized, but their catalytic reactivity is typically lower than that of the enzymatic analogues. The C–H activation step proceeds through two competitive mechanisms, named σ- and π-channels. We have performed high-level wave function theory calculations on bare FeO²⁺ and a series of non-heme Fe(IV)-oxo model complexes in order to elucidate the electronic properties and the ligand field effects on those channels. Our results suggest that a coordination environment formed by a weak field gives access to both competitive channels, yielding more reactive Fe(IV)-oxo sites. In contrast, a strong ligand environment stabilizes only the σ-channel. Our concluding remarks will aid the derivation of new structure–reactivity descriptors that can contribute to the development of the next generation of functional catalysts.