One of the main goals of 21st century chemistry is to replace environmentally hazardous processes with energy efficient routes allowing to totally avoid the use and production of harmful chemicals and to maximise the quantity of raw material that ends up in the final product. Selective photocatalytic conversions will play a major role in this evolution and this account shows how photocatalysis is offering an alternative green route for the production of organics.

Selective photocatalytic conversions are offering an alternative green route for replacing environmentally hazardous processes with safe and energy efficient routes. This paper reports the most recent advances in the application of heterogeneous photocatalysis to synthesize valuable compounds by selective oxidation and reduction.