Abstract
The development of efficient and environmentally benign synthetic protocols has attracted increasing interest in modern organic syntheses in view of the growing concern over the environment. As part of this green concept, eutectic solvents (DESs) have emerged as an interesting type of ionic liquid and have shown their usefulness as environmentally benign sustainable alternative to the conventional organic solvents in synthetic chemistry to increase efficiency of organic transformations. The synthetic methodology with the use of DES as green solvent and inexpensive, biodegradable, recyclable catalyst and with its experimental simplicity and maximum synthetic efficiency will be attractive for academic and industrial research looking forward for simple catalytic organic transformations to synthesize drug like small molecules with structural diversity and molecular complexity. The present review focuses on the use of environmentally benign and inexpensive DES as solvent and catalyst in the field of organic chemistry.
•Deep eutectic solvents (DES) have emerged as inexpensive environmentally benign sustainable alternative to the conventional organic solvents in organic syntheses.•The synthesis of deep eutectic mixtures is energy efficient and can be synthesized simply by mixing and heating the components without the need of ion-exchange chromatography and purification.•The DES are efficiently able to function as recyclable and reusable organocatalysts to facilitate the organic transformations.•Deep eutectic solvents with their tailor-made properties can be designed according to the requirement of the synthetic protocol.•Deep eutectic solvents with their dual role will be attractive not only for academic and medicinal research but also for industrial research looking forward for simple catalytic organic transformations.
