1 The Disconnection Approach

This book is about making molecules. Or rather it is to help you design your own syntheses by logical and sensible thinking. This is not a matter of guesswork but requires a way of thinking backwards that we call the disconnection approach. When you plan the synthesis of a molecule, all you know for certain is the structure of the molecule you are trying to make. It is made of atoms but we don’t make molecules from atoms: we make them from smaller molecules. But how to choose which ones? If you wanted to make, say, a wooden joint, you would look in a do-it-yourself book on furniture and you would find an ‘exploded diagram’ showing which pieces you would need and how they would fit together.