An Efficient Method for Chemoselective Reduction of Nitro Compounds Using Bimetallic Fe‐Ni NPs/H3PW12O40.×H2O System

The selective reduction of nitro compounds by treatment with bimetallic Fe‐Ni nanoparticles (NPs) and tungestophosphoric acid hydrate (H₃PW₁₂O₄₀.×H₂O) in H₂O is reported. The method has been applied to a broad range of nitro compounds with different sensitive functionalities, including halides, carbonyl, hydroxyl, aldehyde, methyl, acetyl, nitrile, and ester substituents with excellent yields. The reaction yielded single product in all cases with very high yield. The simple experimental procedure and easy purification make the protocol advantageous.     

Silica-Supported LiHSO4 as a Highly Efficient,Mild, Heterogeneous,and Reusable Catalytic System for the Solvent-Free Synthesis of Bis(indolyl)methanes

Silica-supported LiHSO₄ (LiHSO₄/SiO₂) is used as a green, cheap, and efficient catalytic system for the synthesis of bis(indolyl)methanes via the condensation of indoles with carbonyl compounds under solvent-free conditions. The reactions proceed rapidly at room temperature, and the title compounds are obtained in high to excellent yields.     

Au/Mg(OH)2: Highly efficient for selective oxidation of 1,2-propanediol to lactic acid with molecular oxygen

The catalytic oxidation of biomass-derived polyhydroxyl compounds provides an efficient and green route for biomass resource utility. Gold nanocrystals supported on Mg(OH)₂ were synthesized by sol-immobilization method, characterized by XRD, TEM, UV-vis DRS, and tested in the selective oxidation of 1,2-propanediol to lactic acid. The gold particle size and the ratio of Au to 1,2-propanediol strongly influenced the catalytic activity. Over Au/Mg(OH)₂ with the majority of gold particles concentrated in 14–18 nm, excellent catalytic performance with 94.4% conversion and 89.3% selectivity to lactic acid has been achieved under 0.3 MPa O₂ at 60 °C for 6 h.     

Versatility of Alternative Reaction Media: Water-Mediated Domino and Green Chemical Synthesis of Pyrimido[1,2-a]benzimidazole Under Nonconventional Conditions

A convenient and clean water-mediated synthesis of a series of 4-amino-2-aryl-1,2-dihydro pyrimido[1,2-a]benzimidazoles (4) is reported using alternative nonconventional energy sources. The products are obtained in shorter times with excellent yields (78–89%) from the multicomponent reaction of 2-aminobenzimidazole (1), malononitrile/ethylcyanoacetate (2a/b), and carbonyl compounds (3). The reaction is found to be general with respect to the cyclic and acyclic carbonyl compounds. The procedure does not involve the use of any additional reagent/catalyst, produces no waste, and represents a green synthetic protocol with high atom economy.     

Autocatalytic Green Synthesis of Imines in Traceless Medium

For the first time, condensations of amines with carbonyl compounds have been performed in supercritical carbon dioxide (sc-CO₂). The reactions with aldehydes or active ketones proceed at moderate temperatures (35–55 °C) without use of external catalysts. The process is autocatalytic: it is accelerated by the carbonic acid generated in situ by interaction between the released water and the CO₂ medium. The imine products were obtained in high yields in a crystalline form and did not require further purification. The one-pot transfer hydrogenation and [4+2] cycloaddition reactions performed in the CO₂ medium have uncovered attractive prospects for facile green synthesis of more complex and valuable compounds from the generated in situ imine products.     

Synthesis of N-Difluoromethyl Carbonyl Compounds from N-Difluoromethylcarbamoyl Fluorides

Fluorinated small molecules are commonly used in functional small-molecule chemistry, and N-difluoromethyl (N-CF₂H) compounds are particularly intriguing due to their unique and unexplored physiochemical properties. However, despite limited progress, a general methodological approach to the synthesis of N-CF₂H compounds remains elusive. Here, guided by computation, we present a simple and practical protocol to access N-CF₂H amides and related carbonyl derivatives. The protocol involves a one-pot conversion of thioformamides through desulfurization-fluorination and acylation, providing N-difluoromethylcarbamoyl fluoride building blocks that can be further diversified to a variety of unexplored N-CF₂H carbonyl compounds with rich functionality. Additionally, preliminary studies on their properties and stability showcased their potential application in pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals.     

Meglumine sulfate-catalyzed one-pot green synthesis and antioxidant activity of α-aminophosphonates

A green and efficient synthetic protocol has been developed for the synthesis of a new series of substituted diethyl(((2-methoxy-5-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl)amino)(phenyl)methyl)phosphonates via a one-pot three-component reaction of 2-methoxy-5-trifluoromethyl aniline with various aromatic-substituted aldehydes and diethyl phosphite using meglumine sulfate as an eco-friendly catalyst at room temperature under solvent-free conditions. The merits of this method are high product yield, short reaction time, easy workup, and purification. All the synthesized compounds were evaluated for the antioxidant activity by DPPH, NO, and H₂O₂ methods using ascorbic acid as a standard. The compounds 4a and 4g showed the highest antioxidant activity than that of the standard ascorbic acid.     

Fe3O4@ZrO2/SO42‐: A recyclable magnetic heterogeneous nanocatalyst for synthesis of β‐amino carbonyl derivatives and synthesis of benzylamino coumarin derivatives through Mannich reaction

In the present work, we developed an effective protocol for the synthesis of β‐amino carbonyl compounds and synthesis of benzylamino coumarin derivatives through Mannich type reaction in high yields. Fe₃O₄@ZrO₂/SO₄^2‐ was employed as an effective heterogeneous nanocatalyst for the Mannich reaction. This research consists of two sections. In first section, β‐amino carbonyl derivatives were synthesized under solvent‐free condition. In the other section, benzylamino coumarin compounds were synthesized at room temperature. The present approach offers several advantages such as short reaction times, low cost, easy work‐up, mild reaction conditions, high yields and ease of recovery and reusability of the catalyst without significant loss of activity.     

Zn-K10-clay (clayzic) as an efficient water-tolerant, solid acid catalyst for the synthesis of benzimidazoles and quinoxalines at room temperature

A very simple, green and efficient protocol is developed in which zinc chloride-exchanged K10-montmorillonite (clayzic) is employed as a Lewis acid catalyst in aqueous media at room temperature for the synthesis of various benzimidazoles and quinoxalines from carbonyl compounds and o-phenylenediamine. Among the various catalysts (including claycop and Zn²⁺-Y) studied, clayzic produces benzimidazoles and quinoxalines in higher yield, and with a flexible diamine such as ethylenediamine only the bis-Schiff base is formed. Other salient features of this protocol include milder conditions, atom-economy, absence of coupling agents, and no wastes.     

PEG-SO3H as a new, highly efficient and homogeneous polymeric catalyst for the synthesis of bis(indolyl)methanes and 4,4��-(arylmethylene)-bis(3-methyl-1-phenyl-1Hpyrazol-5-ol)s in water

In this work, a green, simple and highly efficient procedure for the synthesis of bis(indolyl)methanes and 4,4??- (arylmethylene)-bis(3-methyl-1-phenyl-1H-pyrazol-5-ol)s [as an important class of bis(pyrazolyl)methanes] is described. The condensation of indoles or 1-phenyl-3-methylpyrazol-5-one with carbonyl compounds catalyzed by poly(ethylene glycol)-bound sulfonic acid (PEG-SO₃H) in water affords the title compounds in high yields and relatively short reaction times.     

Autotandem Catalysis: Inexpensive and Green Access to Functionalized Ketones by Intermolecular Iron-Catalyzed Amidoalkynylation/Hydration Cascade Reaction via N-Acyliminium Ion Chemistry

Iron-based catalysts were applied in cascade-type reactions for the synthesis of different carbonyl compounds. The reactions proceeded by a new iron-catalyzed cascade of alkynylation/hydration by using both the σ- and π-Lewis acid properties of iron salts. The alkynylation reactions of several endo and exocyclic acetoxylactams were achieved with three different catalysts including FeCl₃ ⋅ 6H₂O, FeCl₃, and Fe(OTf)₃ showing the efficiency of σ-Lewis acidity of iron (III) salts in catalyzing the alkynylation reaction. We also demonstrated that the reaction sequence could be shortened by the direct use of hydroxylactams, leading to an environmentally friendly protocol, avoiding the need to perform unnecessary lengthy steps. A combination of the hard/soft iron Lewis acid properties was then used to implement an unprecedented tandem intermolecular alkynylation/intramolecular hydration sequence allowing expedient access to a new carbonyl structures from trivial materials.     

A New Method for the Reductive Cleavage of S-S Bond by the System of Cp2TiCl2/i-BuMgBr/THF and its Application in Synthesis of α-Alkylthio Carbonyl Compounds

The reduction of disulfides by Cp₂TiCI₂/i-BuMgBr/THF led to nucleophilic sulfides [Cp₂TiSR]. This species reacted with α-broroo carbonyl compounds to give α-alkylthio carbonyl compounds in high yields.     

Copper(II) triflate-catalyzed reduction of carboxylic acids to alcohols and reductive etherification of carbonyl compounds

A protocol is described for the reduction of carboxylic acids to primary alcohols using 1,1,3,3-tetramethyldisiloxane (TMDS) and a catalytic amount of Cu(OTf)₂. Aliphatic as well as aromatic carboxylic acids are reduced in high selectivity and good yields. TMDS/Cu(OTf)₂ has also been found to be an efficient catalytic reducing system for the preparation of symmetrical ethers from carbonyl compounds under mild conditions.     

A New Glimpse into the CO2‐Philicity of Carbonyl Compounds

We report a theoretical study on non‐conventional structures of 1:1 complexes between carbon dioxide and carbonyl compounds. These structures have never been reported before but are relevant for understanding the solubility of carbonyl compounds in supercritical CO₂. The work is based on the results of ab initio calculations at the MP2 and CCSD(T) levels using aug‐cc‐pVDZ and aug‐cc‐pVTZ basis sets. Investigated systems include aldehydes, ketones and esters, together with some fluorinated derivatives. The results are interpreted in terms of natural bond orbital analyses. Harmonic vibrational frequency calculations have also been done in order to compare them with available experimental data. We show for the first time that complexes where CO₂ behaves globally as a Lewis base are stable in the case of ketones and esters, but not in the case of aldehydes, and their stability is similar to that of traditional complexes in which CO₂ behaves as a Lewis acid. This finding considerably modifies the concept of CO₂‐philicity and may have important ramifications in the development of green reactions in supercritical CO₂.     

Colloidal Palladium Nanoparticles with In Situ H2: Reducing System for α,β-Unsaturated Carbonyl Compounds

A new reducing system comprising Pd(OAc)₂ and NaBH₄ in methanol to generate palladium nanoparticles has been efficiently utilized to reduce a variety of unsaturated carbonyl compounds. These were reduced to their corresponding saturated alcohols and fully saturated compounds in selected cases. This protocol presents alternative and mild reaction conditions for reduction.     

Catalyst-free,facile, and an efficient synthesis of α-aminonitriles employing Zn(CN)2 as an ecofriendly cyanating agent

An efficient and eco-friendly method has been developed for the synthesis of α-aminonitriles via one-pot three-component condensation of carbonyl compounds, amines, and Zn(CN)₂ under mild conditions. This protocol has the features of use of inexpensive, ecofriendly readily available, effective cyanide source, high yield, and simple work-up procedure.     

A remarkable iodine-catalyzed protection of carbonyl compounds

We report here a remarkably simple molecular iodine-catalyzed protection method for various carbonyl compounds as ketals in a general reaction. The iodine-catalyzed reaction of mandelic acid and lactic acid with several aldehydes has furnished a highly diastereoselective synthesis of cis and trans dioxolanones.     

Solvent-switchable Acetalization by Yb（OTf）3-Catalyzed Procedures

O,O＇Diethyl acetals were prepared in high yields under mild conditions via the reaction of triethyl orthoformate with aldehydes and ketones in absolute ethanol in the presence of as low as 0.1 tool% of Yb（OTf）3. Using the same catalyst in THF-H2O, these O,O＇-diethyl acetals could be converted to the corresponding carbonyl compounds efficiently. This new protection-deprotection protocol presents the advantages of ease of execution, high efficiency and good chemoselectivity.     

Modified Borohydride Agents1a-d Methyltriphenylphosphonium Tetrahydroborate; MePh3P+BH4 − as a Selective and An Efficient Reducing Agent

Abstract

MePh₃P⁺BH₄ ^? is able to reduce aldehydes and ketones to their corresponding alcohols in CH₂Cl₂. Aldehydes are reduced with high selectivity in the presence of ketones. α,β-Unsaturated carbonyl compounds undergo 1,2-reduction and produce their corresponding allylic alcohols in high yields. Carboxylic acid chlorides are also converted to their alcohols with high yields.     

H2O2/SOCl2: a useful reagent system for the conversion of thiocarbonyls to carbonyl compounds

The H₂O₂/SOCl₂ reagent system has been used as a new and efficient reagent for deprotection of thiocarbonyls to carbonyl compounds. The salient features of this protocol are short reaction times, good chemoselectivity, clean reaction profiles, and simple work-up that preclude the use of toxic solvents.