Department of Chemistry

 
 
 
 
Portrait_Alt
Prof. TAN Xuefeng
譚雪鋒教授

Assistant Professor

Contact Information
Office: YEUNG-P5312
Phone: +852 3442-7822
Fax: +852 3442-0522
Email: xuefetan@cityu.edu.hk
Web: Personal Homepage
ORCID: 0000-0002-6121-1499
Research Interests
  • Organic Synthesis
  • Electroorganic Synthesis
  • Organometallic Catalysis
  • Biomimetic Catalysis

Xuefeng Tan received his B.Sc. in Applied Chemistry from Huazhong Agricultural University in 2011. He earned his Ph.D. in 2016 at Wuhan University under the supervision of Prof. Xumu Zhang, where his research focused on highly efficient catalytic hydrogenation. He then joined Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) as a postdoctoral researcher, continuing to work with Prof. Zhang and developing a strong appreciation for translating academic research toward industrial application.

 

In 2019, Dr. Tan moved to the University of Göttingen as a postdoctoral researcher with Prof. Lutz Ackermann, where he developed a keen interest in electroorganic synthesis enabled by transition-metal catalysis. In early 2021, he was appointed Research Assistant Professor in Prof. Jianwei Sun’s group at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST). There, he developed two asymmetric catalytic transformations based on chiral phosphoric acid (CPA) catalysis, highlighting the role of weak, noncovalent interactions in electrochemical organic synthesis.

 

Dr. Tan’s current research centers on developing efficient synthetic methodologies. Looking ahead, his group will focus on asymmetric catalysis and electrochemical synthesis, with an emphasis on bridging disciplines including organic synthesis, theoretical computation, materials science, and chemical biology. His long-term goal is to address practical challenges—such as the efficient synthesis of pharmaceuticals and advanced materials—by creating scalable, industry-relevant synthetic methods.

Representative Publications
  1. Xie, C.; Yao, B.-X.; Law, K.-C.; Zhang, X.; Ni, S.-F.; Tan, X.* Rationally designed Fe-cyclopentadienone with unique orientations for efficient asymmetric hydrogenation of acylsilanes. Nat. Commun. 2026, 17, 1167.
  2. Li, J.; Pan, Y.; Liu, C.; Tan, X.* Iron-Modulated Chemoselective Cyclopropanation and Chlorocarbonation of Alkenes with Diborodichloromethane. CCS Chem. 2026, 8, 2832-2841.
  3. Pan, Y.; Chen, J.; Li, J.; Tan, X.* Water-enhanced electrochemical hydrogenolysis of aryl C-O bonds. Chem. Sci. 2026, 17, 5249-5255.
  4. Li, J.; Pan, Y.; Wang, X.; Tan, X.* Iron-Mediated Electrochemical Cyclopropanation of Borodiiodomethane with Alkenes. Chin. J. Chem. 2026, 44, 1565-1572.
  5. Li, J.; Chen, Y.; Pan, Y.; Lin, Z.; Tan, X.* Controlled ring-opening of [1.1.1]propellane with aryl catecholato boronates to form monomeric and dimeric methylenecyclobutanes. Sci. Chin. Chem. 2026, 69, 3008-3013.
  6. Tan, X.*; Zhou, Z.; Shao, M.; Sun, J.*, Electrochemical Enantioselective Oxidation of Indoles Via Chiral Phosphoric Acid Catalysis in Cooperation with H3po4 in Aqueous Media. Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. 2025, n/a, e202510078.
  7. Tan, X.*; Gao, S.; Yang, C.; Lang, Q.; Ding, X.; Chen, G.-Q.*; Zhang, X.*, Design and synthesis of novel 1,3-diene bridged chiral atropoisomeric diphosphine ligands for asymmetric hydrogenation of α-dehydro amino ketones. Sci. China. Chem. 2023, 66, 2847-2851.
  8. X. Tan*, Q.-L. Wang, J.-W. Sun*, Electricity-driven Asymmetric Bromocyclization Enabled by Chiral Phosphate Anion Phase-transfer Catalysis, Nat. Commun., 2023, 14 (357).
  9. X. Tan＃, Z. Deng＃, Q. Wang, S. Chen, G. Zhu*, J. Sun*, Enantioselective Synthesis of Tetraarylmethanes through meta-Hydroxyl-directed Benzylic Substitution. Nat. Synth. 2023, 2, 275-285.
  10. X. Tan＃; L. Massignan＃; X. Hou; J. Frey; J. C. A. Oliveira; M. N. Hussain; L. Ackermann*. Rhoda-Electrocatalyzed Bimetallic C−H Oxygenation by Weak O-Coordination. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2021, 60, 13264-13270.
  11. X. Tan; X. Hou; T. Rogge; L. Ackermann*. Ruthenaelectro-Catalyzed Domino Three-Component Alkyne Annulation for Expedient Isoquinoline Assembly. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2021, 60, 4619-4624.
  12. L. Massignan＃; X. Tan＃; T. H. Meyer; R. Kuniyil; A. M. Messinis; L. Ackermann*. C−H Oxygenation Reactions Enabled by Dual Catalysis with Electrogenerated Hypervalent Iodine Species and Ruthenium Complexes. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2020, 59, 3184-3189.
  13. X. Tan; J. Sun*. Nickel-catalyzed asymmetric dicarbofunctionalization of alkynes to access axially chiral styrenes. Chem Catalysis 2022, 2, 2813-2815. (Preview)
  14. W. Zeng＃; X. Tan＃; Y. Yu; G.-Q. Chen*; X. Zhang*. Copper-Catalyzed Asymmetric Hydrosilylation of β-Nitroethyl Aryl Ketones. Org. Lett. 2020, 22, 858-862.
  15. F. Wang＃; X. Tan＃; T. Wu; L.-S. Zheng; G.-Q. Chen*; X. Zhang*. Ni-Catalyzed asymmetric reduction of α-keto-β-lactams via DKR enabled by proton shuttling. Chem. Commun. 2020, 56, 15557-15560.
  16. X. Tan; W. Zeng; J. Wen*.; X. Zhang*. Iridium-Catalyzed Asymmetric Hydrogenation of α-Fluoro Ketones via a Dynamic Kinetic Resolution Strategy. Org. Lett. 2020, 22, 7230-7233.
  17. Y. Shi＃; X. Tan＃; S. Gao; Y. Zhang; J. Wang; X. Zhang*; Q. Yin*. Direct Synthesis of Chiral NH Lactams via Ru-Catalyzed Asymmetric Reductive Amination/Cyclization Cascade of Keto Acids/Esters. Org. Lett. 2020, 22, 2707-2713.
  18. X. Tan; S. Gao; W. Zeng; S. Xin; Q. Yin*; X. Zhang*. Asymmetric Synthesis of Chiral Primary Amines by Ruthenium-Catalyzed Direct Reductive Amination of Alkyl Aryl Ketones with Ammonium Salts and Molecular H2. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2018, 140, 2024-2027.
  19. X. Tan; W. Zeng; X. Zhang; L. W. Chung*; X. Zhang*. Development of a novel secondary phosphine oxide-ruthenium(ii) catalyst and its application for carbonyl reduction. Chem. Commun. 2018, 54, 535-538.
  20. X. Tan＃; G. Wang＃; Z. Zhu; C. Ren; J. Zhou; H. Lv; X. Zhang; L. W. Chung*; L. Zhang; X. Zhang*. Hydrogenation of Aldehydes Catalyzed by an Available Ruthenium Complex. Org. Lett. 2016, 18, 1518-1521.
  21. Q. Wang＃; X. Tan＃; Z. Zhu; X.-Q. Dong*; X. Zhang*. New synthetic strategy for chiral 2-oxazolidinones derivatives via rhodium-catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation. Tetrahedron Lett. 2016, 57, 658-662.
  22. G. Wang＃; X. Tan＃; H. Lv; M. Zhao; M. Wu; J. Zhou; X. Zhang*; L. Zhang*. Highly Selective Conversion of Cellobiose and Cellulose to Hexitols by Ru-Based Homogeneous Catalyst under Acidic Conditions. Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. 2016, 55, 5263-5270.
  23. X. Tan; Y. Wang; Y. Liu; F. Wang; L. Shi; K.-H. Lee; Z. Lin; H. Lv*; X. Zhang*. Highly Efficient Tetradentate Ruthenium Catalyst for Ester Reduction: Especially for Hydrogenation of Fatty Acid Esters. Org. Lett. 2015, 17, 454-457.
  24. X. Tan; Q. Wang; Y. Liu; F. Wang; H. Lv; X. Zhang*. A new designed hydrazine group-containing ruthenium complex used for catalytic hydrogenation of esters. Chem. Commun. 2015, 51, 12193-12196.

 

Job openings

Highly motivated candidates, including research assistant, PhD student and PostDoc, are warmly welcome to join our group. All new and creative ideas are encouraged in our lab. Please feel free to contact me by sending your CV to my email (xuefetan@cityu.edu.hk).

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