Profile: Giacomo Filippini obtained his Master’s degree in Industrial Chemistry from the University of Bologna (Italy). In 2013, he joined the group of Prof. Paolo Melchiorre at ICIQ in Tarragona (Spain), where he undertook his doctoral studies. In 2015, he had the opportunity to join the group of Prof. Oliver Kappe at the University of Graz (Austria) for a research stay. In 2017, he started a postdoctoral appointment in the group of Prof. Maurizio Prato at the University of Trieste (Italy), where he is currently working as an Assistant Professor, investigating the use of carbon-based nanomaterials to design novel organic transformations. In 2014, he was the recipient of the XXIV Award "Guido Paolucci" as the best student of the School of Sciences at the Università di Bologna in the school year 2012-2013. Moreover, in 2022 he was selected as a "Young Researcher to Watch" by the international journal EurJOC, and in 2024 as "2024 Nanoscale Emerging Investigator" by the international journal Nanoscale. In 2023, he was selected as a Member of the European Cultural Institute "Accademia Marchigiana di Scienze, Lettere ed Arti". In 2024, he has been the recipient of the “G. Ciamician” Medal of the Italian Chemical Society.

Areas of Expertise

● Organic Chemistry ● Photochemistry ● Asymmetric Catalysis ● Organocatalysis ● Radical Chemistry

● Materials Science ● Flow Chemistry

Research Overview: ​Our research activity aims at designing and developing novel catalytic organic transformations which address unsolved problems in synthetic chemistry. The final goal is therefore the production of effective, inexpensive and safe catalytic systems that will find widespread use in modern organic synthesis. Research work focuses on:

1. Photocatalysis with Aromatic Compounds: Recently, aromatic compounds have emerged as a reliable class of metal-free photoredox catalysts. Indeed, the great structural variety of these compounds combined with the easy fine-tuning of their electronic properties has unlocked new possibilities for the generation of reactive intermediates under mild operative conditions.

 2. Carbon Dots as Nano-Organocatalysts: Carbon nanodots (CDs) are photo-active carbon-based nanoparticles with sizes below 10 nm. Generally, CDs consist of carbon cores that are surrounded by shells containing numerous polar groups such as carboxylic acids, alcohols, and amines. Our research is focused on the study of CDs synthesis, characterization and modification for their use as (photo)catalysts in organic chemistry.

 3. Catalysis Based on 2D-Materials: Metal-free 2D nanomaterials possess high appeal due to their improved cost-effectiveness and lower toxicity with respect to many inorganic structures. The outstanding electronic characteristics of some metal-free 2D semiconductors have projected them into the world of organic synthesis, where they can function as catalysts to drive the sustainable synthesis of high-value organic molecules.

Selected Publications:

1. G. Filippini, M. Silvi, P. Melchiorre*, “Enantioselective Formal α-Methylation and α-Benzylation of Aldehydes by Means of Photo-Organocatalysis”, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 2017, 56, 4447-4451. 

2. C. Rosso, G. Filippini*, M. Prato*, “Carbon Dots as Nano-Organocatalysts for Synthetic Applications”, ACS Catalysis, 2020, 10, 8090-8105.

3. G. Filippini*, F. Amato, C. Rosso, G. Ragazzon*, A. Vega-Peñaloza, X. Companyó*, L. Dell’Amico, M. Bonchio, M. Prato*, “Mapping the Surface Groups of Amine-Rich Carbon Dots Enables Covalent Catalysis in Aqueous Media”, Chem, 2020, 6, 3022-3037.

4. G. Filippini, F. Longobardo, L. Forster, A. Criado, G. Di Carmine, L. Nasi, C. D’Agostino, M. Melchionna*, P. Fornasiero*, M. Prato*, “Light-Driven, Heterogeneous Organocatalysts for C-C-Bond Formation Towards Valuable Perfluoroalkylated Intermediates”, Sci. Adv., 2020, 6, eabc9923.

5. C. Rosso, G. Filippini, A. Criado, M. Melchionna*, P. Fornasiero, M. Prato*, “Metal-Free Photocatalysis: Two-Dimensional Nanomaterial Connection toward Advanced Organic Synthesis”, ACS  Nano, 2021, 15, 3621-3630.

6. C. Rosso, S. Cuadros, G. Barison, P. Costa, M. Kurbasic, M. Bonchio, M. Prato, L. Dell’Amico*, G. Filippini*, “Unveiling the Synthetic Potential of Substituted Phenols as Fully Recyclable Organophotoredox Catalysts for the Iodosulfonylation of Olefins”, ACS Catalysis, 2022, 12, 4290-4295.

7. M. Marchi, E. Raciti, S. M. Gali, F. Piccirilli, H. Vondracek, A. Actis, E. Salvadori, C. Rosso, A. Criado, C. D’Agostino, L. Forster, D. Lee, A. C. Foucher, R. K. Rai, D. Beljonne, E. A. Stach, M. Chiesa, R. Lazzaroni, G. Filippini*, M. Prato, M. Melchionna*, P. Fornasiero*, “Carbon Vacancies Steer the Activity in Dual Ni Carbon Nitride Photocatalysis”, Adv. Sci. 2023, 10, 2303781.

8. G. Gentile, M. Morant-Giner, L. Cardo, M. Melchionna, P. Fornasiero, M. Prato, G. Filippini*, “DoE-Assisted Development of a 2H-MoS₂-Catalyzed Approach for the Production of Indole Derivatives”, ChemSusChem, 2023, e202300831.

For the full list of publications, please, refer to Google Scholar - link: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=pMlMU8MAAAAJ&hl=it&oi=sra