Supported nanoparticles and single-atom catalysts for the synthesis of deuterated alcohols

Deuterated alcohols are valuable synthetic targets due to their roles in pharmaceuticals, materials, and mechanistic studies. Conventional homogeneous strategies for their synthesis, while effective, often require expensive ligands and offer limited catalyst recovery. Heterogeneous catalysis, by contrast, provides a robust and recyclable alternative with enhanced scalability. Recent advances in supported metal nanoparticles and single-atom catalysts (SACs) have enabled high-efficiency and site-selective deuteration of alcohols. This Perspective presents heterogeneous catalytic systems as evolving into scalable and efficient platforms for deuterated alcohol synthesis, opening new directions for sustainable isotope incorporation. Conventional homogeneous strategies for the synthesis of deuterated alcohols — valuable synthetic targets due to their roles in pharmaceuticals, materials, and mechanistic studies — present limitations in terms of cost and catalyst recovery, with heterogeneous catalysis providing recyclability and enhanced scalability. In this Perspective, the authors discuss the evolution of heterogeneous catalytic systems into scalable and efficient platforms for deuterated alcohol synthesis, highlighting new directions for sustainable isotope incorporation.