Facile synthesis of methylthiomethyl esters through Pummerer-type rearrangement of carboxylic acids and DMSO under metal-free conditions

A green and cost-effective Pummerer-type rearrangement between readily accessible carboxylic acids and DMSO has been achieved under metal-free conditions in satisfactory to excellent yields. The transformation for the synthesis of valuable methylthiomethyl esters is shown to be a convenient strategy for various (hetero)aromatic acids, α,β-unsaturated carboxylic acids and saturated alkyl carboxylic acids with good functional group tolerance.     

A colourful azulene-based protecting group for carboxylic acids

An intensely blue-coloured protecting group for carboxylic acids has been developed. The protecting group is introduced through a Steglich esterification that couples 6-(2-hydroxyethyl)azulene (AzulE) and the carboxylic acid substrate. Deprotection is effected under basic conditions by the addition of the amidine base DBU, whereupon cleavage occurs, accompanied by a colour change. A two-step deprotection methodology comprising activation with oxalyl chloride and deprotection with a very mild base was developed for use with base-sensitive substrates. The AzulE esters were found to be compatible with other commonly employed protecting groups – silyl ethers, MOM acetals – by studying their orthogonal and concomitant deprotections. The stability of the new protecting group towards various synthetic processes – oxidation, reduction, cross-coupling, olefination and treatment with base – provided the basis of a versatility profile. This indicated that AzulE esters are sensitive to strongly oxidising and basic agents while being compatible with reducing conditions and selected other reactions. The convenience of a highly coloured protecting group for tracking material (and avoiding loss of compound) through laboratory processes warrants further investigation of this and/or related species.     

One-pot two-step conversion of aromatic carboxylic acids and esters to aromatic aldehydes via indium-catalyzed reductive thioacetalization and desulfurization

Described herein is that a new approach to a one-pot two-step conversion of aromatic carboxylic acids/esters to aromatic aldehydes, in which indium(III) iodide effectively catalyzes both the first reductive thioacetalization of carboxylic acids and a subsequent desulfurization of the in-situ formed thioacetal intermediates leading to aldehydes.     

A mild conversion of arylboronic acids and their pinacolyl boronate esters into phenols using hydroxylamine

Hydroxylamine was found to be a mild reagent for conversion of arylboronic acids and their pinacolyl boronate esters into phenols. This procedure works on most arylboronic acids at room temperature, yielding phenols in moderate to good yields, and efficiently on arylboronates also yielding phenols in good yields.     

A mild and efficient reaction for conversion of carboxylic acids into acid bromides with ethyl tribromoacetate/triphenylphosphine under acid-free conditions

Acid bromides were prepared efficiently from carboxylic acids with readily available ethyl tribromoacetate and triphenylphosphine at room temperature under neutral conditions. The present process is applicable to the preparation of various acid bromides from aromatic and aliphatic carboxylic acids. Aromatic carboxylic acids were found to be more reactive than aliphatic carboxylic acids under reaction conditions.     

An effective method for the synthesis of carboxylic esters and lactones using substituted benzoic anhydrides with Lewis acid catalysts

An efficient mixed-anhydride method for the synthesis of carboxylic esters and lactones using benzoic anhydride having electron withdrawing substituent(s) is developed by the promotion of Lewis acid catalysts. In the presence of a catalytic amount of TiCl₂(ClO₄)₂, various carboxylic esters are prepared in high yields through the formation of the corresponding mixed-anhydrides from 3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)benzoic anhydride and carboxylic acids. The combined catalyst consisting of TiCl₂(ClO₄)₂ together with chlorotrimethylsilane functions as an effective catalyst for the synthesis of carboxylic esters from free carboxylic acids and alcohols with 4-(trifluoromethyl)benzoic anhydride. Various macrolactones are prepared from the free ω-hydroxycarboxylic acids by the combined use of 4-(trifluoromethyl)benzoic anhydride and titanium(IV) catalysts together with chlorotrimethylsilane under mild reaction conditions. The lactonization of trimethylsilyl ω-(trimethylsiloxy)carboxylates using 4-(trifluoromethyl)benzoic anhydride is also promoted at room temperature in the presence of a catalytic amount of TiCl₂(ClO₄)₂. An 8-membered ring lactone, a synthetic intermediate of cephalosporolide D, is successfully synthesized according to this mixed-anhydride method using 4-(trifluoromethyl)benzoic anhydride by the promotion of a catalytic amount of Hf(OTf)₄.     

Effective esterification of carboxylic acids using (6-oxo-6H-pyridazin-1-yl)phosphoric acid diethyl ester as novel coupling agents

(6-Oxo-6H-pyridazin-1-yl)phosphoric acid diethyl esters (3) are efficient and selective coupling agents for equimolar esterification of carboxylic acids and alcohols. Esterification of aliphatic and aromatic carboxylic acids with aliphatic and aromatic alcohols using 3 afforded the corresponding esters chemoselectively in good to excellent yield.     

Approaches to the liquid chromatographic determination of carboxylic acids using potentiometric detection with a metallic copper electrode

Summary A metallic copper electrode is evaluated as a potentiometric detector for carboxylic acids. The application of this device to ion-exchange chromatography is illustrated by the determination of oxalate in urine. Oxalate was selectively detected in the presence of a 100-fold excess of sulphate after separation on a low-capacity methacrylate anion-exchange column using 0.7mM potassium hydrogen phthalate at pH 7.1 as eluent. Calibration plots were linear up to 50ppm of oxalate. Potentiometric detection has also been applied to ion-exclusion chromatography using 0.005% phosphoric acid as eluent. With this method detection limits of 0.2, 2.1, 5.0 and 5.3μg were obtained for formic, acetic, propionic and iso-butyric acids, respectively.     

A new and efficient aerobic oxidation of aldehydes to carboxylic acids with singlet oxygen in the presence of porphyrin sensitizers and visible light

A new aerobic route is introduced for the oxidation of a variety of aromatic and aliphatic aldehydes to the corresponding carboxylic acid derivatives using molecular oxygen in the presence of tetraphenylporphyrin (H₂TPP), tetramesitylporphyrin (H₂TMP), tetrakisdichlorophenylporphyrin (H₂TDCPP), ZnTPP, and ZnTMP as sensitizers using visible light in an organic solvent. The method has a wide range of applications, does not involve cumbersome work-up, exhibits chemoselectivity, and proceeds under mild reaction conditions. The products are obtained with good conversions and in reasonable reaction times.     

Ruthenium complex catalyzed oxidative conversion of aliphatic amines to carboxylic acids using bromamine-T: Kinetic and mechanistic study

Ruthenium(III) complex catalyzed oxidation of aliphatic amines with bromamine-T under alkaline condition proceeds efficiently to afford carboxylic acids in high conversion. Hexa-coordinated ruthenium(III) complex of the type [RuCl₂(PPh₃)(L)] (L, tridentate ligand derived by the condensation of o-phenylene diamine with salicylaldehyde) has been synthesized and it was used as a catalyst for the oxidative conversion of amines to carboxylic acids. The detailed mechanistic and kinetic investigations have been made for the oxidation reactions. Under similar experimental conditions all the amines proceed with a common oxidation mechanism and follows an identical kinetics with first-order dependence each on [Oxidant]_o and [Amine]_o, and fractional order with respect to [Catalyst] and [OH⁻]. To understand the detailed kinetics and mechanism of the reactions, the reactions have been subjected to changes in (i) dielectric permittivity, (ii) primary salt effect, (iii) halide ions and (v) temperature. The reactions were carried out at different temperature and the activation parameters have been calculated. From enthalpy–entropy relationships and Exner correlations, the isokinetic temperature (β) of 382 K, calculated is much higher than the experimental temperature (313 K), indicating that, the enthalpy factor controls the rate. The observed results have been explained by a plausible mechanism and the related rate law has been deduced. The present method developed for the oxidation of amines to carboxylic acids by bromamine-T offers several advantages including high conversion, short reaction times, and stable, cost effective and relatively non-toxic reagents which make the reaction process simple and smooth.     

Mild and direct conversion of esters to morpholine amides using diisobutyl(morpholino)aluminum: application to efficient one-pot synthesis of ketones and aldehydes from esters

Morpholine amide intermediates, which are easily prepared by aminolysis of various esters with diisobutyl(morpholino)aluminum, react with organolithium and reducing agents (DIBALH or LDBMA) without isolation of the aminolysis intermediates to give ketones in 83–95% yields and aldehydes quantitatively.     

Polycondensation of activated L‐valine and L‐leucine esters with various lewis acids

To develop a novel polycondensation method for the preparation of poly (amino acid)s, we screened a transition metal or a rare‐earth triflate as a Lewis acid for the polycondensation of activated amino acid esters in N,N‐dimethylformamide solutions at room temperature. The polymerizations of 4‐nitrophenyl L ‐leucinate ( 1a ) and 4‐nitrophenyl L ‐valinate ( 1b ) scarcely proceeded without any Lewis acid at room temperature. In the presence of 5 mol % metal triflates, especially scandium(III) trifluoromethanesulfonate, the polymerizations of both monomers were promoted effectively. The products, which were collected by the reaction mixture being poured into water, were recognized as poly(L ‐valine)s by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, gel permeation chromatography analysis, and ¹H NMR spectroscopy. These results showed that a metal triflate as a Lewis acid could coordinate to a carbonyl oxygen of activated L ‐valinate and L ‐leucinate even in a highly polar solvent, such as N,N‐dimethylformamide; therefore, the polymerizations of activated L ‐valinate and L ‐leucinate were promoted. Because steric hindrance derived from the isobutyl group in 1b was less than that of the isopropyl unit in 1a , the effect of the metals was not as sensitive for the polymerization of 1b . © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 543–547, 2007     

A novel synthesis of reactive polymers with pendant halomethyl groups by the polyaddition reaction of bis(epoxide)s with bis(chloroacetoxy)esters or bis(bromoacetoxy)esters

New reactive polymers with pendant halomethyl groups were successfully synthesized by polyaddition reactions of bis(epoxide)s with bis(chloroacetoxy)ester such as 1,4-bis [(chloroacetoxy)methyl]benzene (BCAMB) or 1,4-bis[(bromoacetoxy)methyl]benzene (BBAMB) using quaternary onium salts or crown ether complexes as catalysts. The polyaddition reaction of diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A (DGEBA) with BCAMB proceeded very smoothly with high yields (83–96%) by the addition of quaternary onium salts such as tetrabutylphosphonium bromide (TBPB) or crown ether complexes such as 18-crown-6/KBr as catalysts to produce high molecular weight polymers, although the reaction occurred without any catalyst to give low molecular weight polymer in low yield at 90°C for 48 h. It was also found that the reaction proceeded smoothly in aprotic polar solvents such as N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) and N,N-dimethylacetamide (DMAc) to produce high molecular weight polymers. Polyaddition reactions of DGEBA or digylcidyl ether of ethylene glycol (DGEEG) with BBAMB, other bis(chloroacetoxy)esters or bis(bromoacetoxy)esters using TBPB in DMAc also proceeded smoothly to give the corresponding polymers. The resulting poly(ether-ester)s contain reactive halomethyl groups as side chains, which were introduced during main chain formation. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 35: 3791–3799, 1997     

An effective kinetic resolution of racemic α-arylpropanoic acids, α-arylbutanoic acids, and β-substituted-α-arylpropanoic acids with bis(9-phenanthryl)methanol as a new achiral nucleophile in the asymmetric esterification using carboxylic anhydrides and the acyl-transfer catalyst

A general method for the kinetic resolution of racemic α-arylalkanoic acids with achiral alcohols is described. It was determined that bis(9-phenanthryl)methanol is a suitable nucleophile which reacts with the intermediary mixed anhydrides generated from aromatic anhydrides with α-arylpropanoic acids or β-substituted-α-arylpropanoic acids in the presence of (+)-benzotetramisole to produce the corresponding optically active esters with high ee’s under very mild conditions.     

A Novel Catalytic Method for the Oxidation of Sulfides to Sulfoxides with Silica Sulfuric Acid and Sodium Nitrite in the Presence of KBr and/or NaBr as Catalyst

Highly efficient selective oxidation of sulfides to sulfoxides by NaNO₂ and silica sulfuric acid catalyzed with KBr or NaBr has been reported. This oxidation was carried out in the presence of wet SiO₂ (50% w/w) in acetonitrile at room temperature with good to excellent yields.     

A 1D Cu(II) coordination polymer exhibiting ferromagnetic interactions and a mononuclear Cu(II) complex of substituted pyrazole carboxylic acids: Synthesis, characterization and crystal structure

Reaction of 2 equiv. amount of copper(II) nitrate hexahydrate with 1 equiv. of 5-methyl-1-pyridin-2-yl-1H-pyrazole-3-carboxylic acid (PyPzCA) in presence of triethyl amine base afforded a 1D coordination polymeric compound [Cu₂(PyPzCA)₂(H₂O)₃(NO₃)]NO₃·H₂O (1). Whereas, the same reaction when repeated with 1-(4,6-dimethyl-pyrimidin-2-yl)-5-methyl-1H-pyrazole-3-carboxylic acid (PymPzCA) instead of PyPzCA, a mononuclear compound [Cu(PymPzCA)]·2H₂O·NEt₃ (2) is formed. Both the complexes are crystallographically characterized. In 1, both the copper atoms (Cu1 and Cu2) have distorted square pyramidal geometry with N₂O₃ chromophore while, in 2, the central copper atom has a distorted trigonal bipyramidal geometry with N₄O chromophore. Complex 1, is a 1D coordination polymer where the metal centers being far apart and are involved in a weak ferromagnetic interaction which is quite unexpected.     

A study of antimony complexed to soil-derived humic acids and inorganic antimony species along a Massachusetts highway

Antimony is a toxic metalloid and is often present in inorganic forms such as more toxic Sb(III) and less toxic Sb(V). Auto brake linings are major contributors to antimony emissions along heavily traveled highways. In this study the distribution of water extractable Sb(III) and Sb(V) species along a Massachusetts highway was investigated. Antimony complexed to roadside soil-derived humic acids was studied by ion chromatography (IC) and size exclusion chromatography (SEC) coupled to inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Thirty surface soil and soil core samples along route 116 in western Massachusetts were collected. Two soil-derived humic acids were extracted from the roadside soils. Elevated levels of nitric acid-extractable Sb (range: 2.9-24.9 µg/kg) and Pb (range: 10.4-2420 mg/kg) were found in the soil along the road and correlated well with highway traffic patterns. Sb(V) was the dominant species present in both surface and soil core samples, and is mostly confined to the top 20-cm layer of soil. HA mediated Sb(III) to Sb(V) oxidation was relatively fast and demonstrated pseudo-first order kinetics, where pseudo rate constant k is 3.033 h^-1. Antimony bound to soil-derived humic acid molar mass fractions was identified.     

Melt polycondensation of L‐lactic acid with Sn(II) catalysts activated by various proton acids: A direct manufacturing route to high molecular weight Poly(L‐lactic acid)

Poly(L ‐lactic acid) (PLLA) was produced by the melt polycondensation of L ‐lactic acid. For the optimization of the reaction conditions, various catalyst systems were examined at different temperature and reaction times. It was discovered that Sn(II) catalysts activated by various proton acids can produce high molecular weight PLLA [weight‐average molecular weight (M_w ) ≥ 100,000] in a relatively short reaction time (≤15 h) compared with simple Sn(II)‐based catalysts (SnO, SnCl₂ · 2H₂O), which produce PLLA with an M_w of less than 30,000 after 20 h. The new catalyst system is also superior to the conventional systems in regard to racemization and discoloration of the resultant polymer. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 38: 1673–1679, 2000     

Determination of aspartate and glutamate in rabbit retina using polymer monolith microextraction coupled to high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection

A simple, sensitive and low-cost method was developed for the determination of aspartate (Asp) and glutamate (Glu) in rabbit retina. Polymer monolith microextraction (PMME) using a poly(acrylamide–vinylpyridine–N,N′-methylene bisacrylamide) (AA–VP–Bis) monolithic column was combined with derivatization of Asp and Glu using 8-phenyl-(4-oxy-acetic acid N-hydroxysuccinimide ester)-4,4-difluoro-1,3,5,7-tetramethyl-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene (TMPAB-OSu), and this was used to analyze the derivatives of Asp and Glu by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with fluorescence detection. The conditions for the derivatization and the subsequent extraction of Asp and Glu derivatives were optimized. The enrichment factors for the derivatives of Asp and Glu were found to be 14.1 and 14.7, respectively, by PMME. The limits of detection of Asp and Glu were 0.14 and 0.53 nmol/L, respectively. The precision and recovery were evaluated with spiked retina. The inter- and intraday relative standard deviations were less than 10%. The proposed method was successfully applied to the determination of Asp and Glu levels in rabbit retina samples with different stages of intraocular hypertension.     

Synthesis of 4‐halo‐2 (5H)‐furanones and their suzuki‐coupling reactions with organoboronic acids. A general route to 4‐aryl‐2 (5 H) ‐furanones

4‐Halo‐2(5H)‐furanones were prepared by the halolactonization of 2,3‐allenoic acids. The subsequent Suzuki coupling reaction of 4‐halo 2(5H)‐furanones with aryl boronic acids was carried out to produce 4‐aryl‐2(5H)‐furanones in excellent yields.