Methyltrioxorhenium and its applications in olefin oxidation, metathesis and aldehyde olefination

Organorhenium(VII) oxides, most notably methyltrioxorhenium (MTO) and several of its derivatives gained significant importance as extremely versatile catalysts for olefin oxidation reactions, aldehyde olefination, olefin metathesis, etc. MTO is nowadays available by several straightforward synthetic procedures and found even applications in material sciences, forming the first known polymeric organometallic oxide. In this review, the applications of MTO in oxidation catalysis, olefin metathesis and aldehyde olefination are summarized and conclusions concerning possible future applications of organorhenium oxides and related complexes are drawn.