An Efficient Zinc‐Catalyzed Dehydration of Primary Amides to Nitriles

In the present study, the zinc‐catalyzed dehydration of a variety of amides with N‐methyl‐N‐(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide (MSTFA) as a dehydration reagent into the corresponding nitriles has been examined in detail. With the straightforward and commercially available zinc(II)triflate as the precatalyst and MSTFA, an excellent system has been established to afford nitriles in excellent yields and chemoselectivities. After investigation of reaction conditions and the scope and limitations, several efforts were carried out to understand the reaction mechanism.     

Synthesis,characterization and catalytic activity of peripherally tetra‐substituted Co(II) phthalocyanines for cyclohexene oxidation

New 3,3‐diphenylpropoxyphthalonitrile (5) was obtained from 3,3‐diphenylpropanol (3) and 4‐nitrophthalonitrile (4) with K₂CO₃ in DMF at 50 °C. The novel cobalt(II) phthalocyanine complexes, tetrakis‐[2‐(1,4‐dioxa‐8‐azaspiro[4.5]dec‐8‐yl)ethoxy] phthalocyaninato cobalt(II) (2) and tetrakis‐(3,3‐diphenylpropoxy)phthalocyaninato cobalt(II) (6) were prepared by the reaction of the phthalonitrile derivatives 1 and 5 with CoCl₂ by microwave irradiation in 2‐(dimethylamino)ethanol for at 175 °C, 350 W for 7 and 10 min, respectively. These new cobalt(II)phthalocyanine complexes were characterized by spectroscopic methods (IR, UV–visible and mass spectroscopy) as well as elemental analysis. Complexes 2 and 6 are employed as catalyst for the oxidation of cyclohexene using tert‐butyl hydroperoxide (TBHP), m‐chloroperoxybenzoic acid (m‐CPBA), aerobic oxygen and hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) as oxidant. It is observed that both complexes can selectively oxidize cyclohexene to give 2‐cyclohexene‐1‐ol as major product, and 2‐cyclohexen‐1‐one and cyclohexene oxide as minor products. TBHP was found to be the best oxidant since minimal destruction of the catalyst, higher selectivity and conversion were observed in the products. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Copper‐Catalyzed Intermolecular Trifluoromethylazidation of Alkenes: Convenient Access to CF3‐Containing Alkyl Azides

A novel copper‐catalyzed intermolecular trifluoromethylazidation of alkenes has been developed under mild reaction conditions. A variety of CF₃‐containing organoazides were directly synthesized from a wide range of olefins, including activated and unactivated alkenes, and the resulting products can be easily transformed into the corresponding CF₃‐containing amine derivatives.     

Efficient Synthesis of Triarylamines Catalyzed by Copper(I) Diazabutadiene Complexes

Cuprous chloride was coordinated by diazabutadiene (DAB‐R) ligands to form Cu(I)‐(DAB‐R) complexes, most of which have a 1:1 ratio of Cu to DAB‐R as reported. In the case of a special DAB‐ⁱPP, N,N′‐bis(2,6‐diisopropylphenyl)‐1,4‐diaza‐1,3‐butadiene, an unexpected composition of complex was found with the formula Cu(I)Cl(DAB)₂. When employed as catalyst for triarylamine synthesis from the coupling of aryl halides with primary and secondary arylamines, the new Cu(I)‐(DAB‐ⁱPP) complex displayed high efficiency.     

Heterogeneous Catalytic Method for the Conversion of Aldoximes into Nitriles Using Molecular Sieve Modified with Copper(II)

A simple heterogeneous metal-catalyzed method was developed for the transformation of aldoximes into nitriles. Molecular sieve (4 Å) modified with copper(II) proved to be an efficient catalyst for the conversion.

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Efficient and High-Yielding Protocol for the Synthesis of Nitriles from Aldehydes

An operationally simple and high-yielding procedure has been developed for the conversion of araldehydes into the corresponding nitriles using p-toluenesulfonic acid (p-TSA) (a mild catalyst) under microwave irradiation. The products are characterized by infrared spectral analysis and by comparison of the melting and boiling points with the reported values.     

Efficient and Convenient Method for the Synthesis of Symmetrical Triindolylmethanes Catalyzed by Iodine

Indoles reacted with triethyl orthoformate in the presence of a catalytic amount of iodine at room temperature to give the corresponding symmetrical triindolylmethanes (TIMs) in good to high yields.     

Simple and Efficient Method for the Preparation of Aryl Azides Using Sonication

An efficient procedure for the preparation of aryl azides using sonication is described. The convenient sonication-mediated azidation protocol is applicable to aryl compounds under mild conditions with aqueous solution of sodium dichloroiodate and sodium azide. Aryl azides were obtained in excellent yields from a variety of aryl compounds in short reaction times without affecting sensitive functional groups.     

A Supported Copper Hydroxide on Titanium Oxide as an Efficient Reusable Heterogeneous Catalyst for 1,3‐Dipolar Cycloaddition of Organic Azides to Terminal Alkynes

An easily prepared supported copper hydroxide on titanium oxide (Cu(OH)_x/TiO₂) showed high catalytic performance for the 1,3‐dipolar cycloaddition of organic azides to terminal alkynes in non‐polar solvents under anaerobic conditions. The reactions of various combinations of organic azides (four examples, including aromatic and aliphatic ones) and terminal alkynes (eleven examples, including aromatic, aliphatic, and double bond‐containing ones) exclusively proceeded to give the corresponding 1,4‐disubstituted‐1,2,3‐triazole derivatives in a completely regioselective manner. For the transformation of benzyl azide and ethynylbenzene with 0.12 mol % of Cu(OH)_x/TiO₂, the turnover frequency was 505 h^?1 and the turnover number reached up to 800. These values were the highest among those with previously reported heterogeneous catalysts including Cu(OH)_x/Al₂O₃. The observed catalysis was truly heterogeneous and the retrieved catalyst after the reaction could be reused at least three times with retention of its high catalytic performance. It was confirmed by the UV/Vis spectrum of Cu(OH)_x/TiO₂ and the amount of diyne formed that the Cu^II species in Cu(OH)_x/TiO₂ were reduced to Cu^I species by the alkyne–alkyne homocoupling at the initial stage of the reaction (during the pretreatment of Cu(OH)_x/TiO₂ with an alkyne). The catalytic reaction rate for the 1,3‐dipolar cycloaddition linearly increased with an increase in the amount of in situ generated Cu^I species. Therefore, the in situ generated Cu^I species would be the catalytically active species for the present 1,3‐dipolar cycloaddition.     

Copper(I)‐Catalyzed 3‐Position Methylation of Coumarins by Using Di‐tert‐butyl Peroxide as the Methylation Reagents

The copper‐catalyzed methylation of coumarin by using di‐tert‐butyl peroxide (DTBP) has been described. The reaction provides direct access to a wide range of 3‐methylcoumarins in moderate to good yields. In this procedure, it is noteworthy that DTBP was employed not only as the oxidant, but also as the methyl source.     

二元铜族团簇负离子催化CO氧化反应机理

用密度泛函理论B3LYP方法研究了二元铜族团簇负离子AuAg^-, AuCu^-和AgCu^-催化CO氧化反应的详细机理. 计算结果表明: CO在混合团簇中的吸附位顺序为Cu>Au>Ag; O₂也优先吸附到Cu上, 其次为Ag, 最难的为Au; 另外, O₂分子较CO分子易于吸附到混合团簇上. CO氧化反应有三条反应通道, 在热力学和动力学上均容易进行. AuAg-团簇催化CO氧化反应的最优反应通道为CO插入AuAgO₂^-中的Ag―O键形成中间体[Au―AgC(O―O)O]^-, 然后直接分解形成CO₂和AuAgO^-, 或另一个CO分子进攻中间体[Au―AgC(O―O)O]^-形成两分子的CO₂和AuAg^-. 而AuCu^-和AgCu^-催化CO氧化反应的最优反应通道为CO和O₂共吸附到团簇上,然后形成四元环中间体,最后四元环中间体分解形成产物或另一个CO分子进攻四元环中间体从而形成产物. 第二个CO分子的协同效应不明显. AuAg^-和AuCu^-对CO氧化反应催化活性强于Au₂^-团簇, 因此, Ag和Cu掺杂可以提高金团簇的催化活性, 与之前实验研究结果一致.     

Method for a Convenient and Efficient Synthesis of Amino Acid Acrylic Monomers with Zwitterionic Structure

Ampholyte monomers with zwitterionic moiety derived from α‐amino acid, that is, L‐lysine and L‐serine, were obtained using a method in which their copper complexes could be produced in simple steps. The N‐acryloylation of L‐lysine and L‐serine was carried out by reaction between their copper complexes and acryloyl chloride. Specifically, the removal of copper from the copper complex of acryloyl amino acid through the use of 8‐hydroxyquinoline as an organic chelate precipitant increased the yield of the ampholyte monomers with zwitterionic moiety. These syntheses were easily carried out in a three‐step procedure.     

Activation of DMSO by Phosphonitrilic Chloride: An Efficient Method for Oxidation of Alcohols

A variety of alcohols have been oxidized under mild conditions by a dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO)–chlorophosphazene complex. Sensitive groups such as silyl and tetrahydropyranyl (THP) ethers are stable under this condition.     

An Efficient and Convenient Cyclization Method for the Synthesis of Flavans

Flavansrefertoalargegroupofnaturallyoccurringcompoundspossessinga2-phenyl-chromannucleus.Naturallyoccurringflavansexhibitanumberofimportantbiologicalactivitieswhichifexploitedproperly,mayleadtovaluablenewdrugsoragrochemicals'.Inflavansynthesis,thekeystepistoconstructthe3,4-dihydrobenzopyranring-Variousmethodshavebeendevelopedfortheringformation,butmostoftheminvolvemultiplestepsandgivelowoverallyields2.Inthispaper,BF3wasusedforthefirsttimeasanefficientcatalysttoformthepyranringfroml,3-diaryIp…