Editing Catalysis (section)

===Organocatalysis===
{{Main|Organocatalysis}}

Whereas transition metals sometimes attract most of the attention in the study of catalysis, small organic molecules without metals can also exhibit catalytic properties, as is apparent from the fact that many [[enzyme]]s lack transition metals. Typically, organic catalysts require a higher loading (amount of catalyst per unit amount of reactant, expressed in [[mol%]] [[amount of substance]]) than transition metal(-ion)-based catalysts, but these catalysts are usually commercially available in bulk, helping to lower costs. In the early 2000s, these organocatalysts were considered "new generation" and are competitive to traditional [[metal]](-ion)-containing catalysts. 

Organocatalysts are supposed to operate akin to metal-free enzymes utilizing, e.g., noncovalent interactions such as [[hydrogen bonding]]. The discipline organocatalysis is divided into the application of covalent (e.g., [[proline]], [[4-Dimethylaminopyridine|DMAP]]) and noncovalent (e.g., [[thiourea organocatalysis]]) organocatalysts referring to the preferred catalyst-[[substrate (chemistry)|substrate]] [[binding (molecular)|binding]] and interaction, respectively. The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2021 was awarded jointly to Benjamin List and David W.C. MacMillan "for the development of asymmetric organocatalysis."<ref>{{cite web |title=The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2021 |website=NobelPrize.org |url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/chemistry/2021/summary/}}</ref>