Relay Catalysis for Selective Aerobic Oxidative Esterification of Primary Alcohols with Methanol

Esters are bulk and fine chemicals and ubiquitous in polymers, bioactive compounds, and natural products. Their traditional synthetic approach is the esterification of carboxylic acids or their activated derivatives with alcohols. Herein, a bimetallic relay catalytic protocol was developed for the aerobic esterification of one alcohol in the presence of a slowly oxidizing alcohol, which has been identified as methanol. A concise synthesis of phlomic acid was executed to demonstrate the practicality and potential of this reaction.

Palladium-Catalyzed Direct Esterification via C-H Bond Activation of Aldehydes

A concise and highly efficient synthesis method of direct esterification of aldehydes via Pd-catalyzed C-H bond activation of aldehyde group has been developed. The strategy avoids the preoxidation step of aldehyde or use of condensing agents in ester synthesis, which is not only applicable to various alcohols but also suitable for the esterification of phenolics which are usually difficult to be esterified. The methodology has the significant advantages of broad substrate scope, mild reaction conditions, and nonrequirement of additional oxidants.

Methyl benzoate and cinnamate analogs as modulators of DNA methylation in hepatocellular carcinoma

Phenolic acids represent a large collection of phytochemical molecules present in the plant kingdom; they have an important role as epigenetic regulators, particularly as inhibitors of DNA methylation. In the present study, 14 methyl benzoate and cinnamate analogs were synthesized (11-24). Their cytotoxic activity on hepatocellular carcinoma cells (Hep3B) and immortalized human hepatocyte cells was then evaluated. In addition, its effect on the inhibition of global DNA methylation in Hep3B was also determined. Our results showed that the cinnamic derivatives 11-14 and 20-22 were more potent than the free caffeic acid (IC₅₀ 109.7-364.2 µM), being methyl 3,4-dihydroxycinammate (12) the most active with an IC₅₀  = 109.7 ± 0.8 µM. Furthermore, 11-14, 20-23 compounds decreased overall DNA methylation levels by 63% to 97%. The analogs methyl 4-hydroxycinnamate (11), methyl 3,4,5-trimethoxycinnamate (14), methyl 4-methoxycinnamate (21), and methyl 3,4-dimethoxycinnamate (22) showed relevant activities of both cytotoxicity and global DNA methylation inhibition. The molecular docking of 21 and 14 suggested that they partly bind to the SAH-binding pocket of DNA methyltransferase 1. These results emphasize the importance of natural products and their analogs as potential sources of DNA methylation modulating agents.

Co-N-Si/AC Catalyst for Aerobic Oxidation of Benzyl Alcohols to Esters under Mild Conditions

A stable, earth-abundant, reusable cobalt-based heterogeneous catalyst is developed for the oxidative esterification of alcohols under ambient conditions, featuring broad substrate scope, providing good to excellent product yields. This protocol enables easy recyclability of the catalyst, measured up to five times without significant loss of efficiency. The active sites of Co-N-Si/AC are proposed to be Co-N species.

C(sp3)-H Monoarylation of Methanol Enabled by a Bidentate Auxiliary

With the assistance of a practical directing group (COAQ), the first catalytic protocol for the palladium-catalyzed C(sp³)-H monoarylation of methanol has been developed, offering an invaluable synthesis means to establish extensive derivatives of crucial arylmethanol functional fragments. Furthermore, the gram-scale reaction, broad substrate scope, excellent functional group compatibility, and even the practical synthesis of medicines further demonstrate the usefulness of this strategy.

Bi(iii)-catalyzed aminooxygenation of propargyl amidines to synthesize 2-fluoroalkyl imidazole-5-carbaldehydes and their decarbonylations

The first example of main group metal Bi(iii)-catalyzed aminooxygenation of fluorinated propargyl amidines was developed to produce 2-fluoroalkyl imidazole-5-carbaldehydes in moderate to excellent yields, in which phenol played a critical role and could be recovered and recycled. In the presence of KOt-Bu, an unconventional decarbonylation occurred on the 2-fluoroalkyl imidazole-5-carbaldehydes.

Pd-Colloids-Catalyzed/Ag2 O-Oxidized General and Selective Esterification of Benzylic Alcohols

Palladium colloids obtained from the degradation of Hermann-Beller palladacycle proved to be an efficient catalytic system in combination with silver oxide as a selective oxidant for the oxidative esterification of differently substituted benzyl alcohols in MeOH as solvent. Excellent reactivity exhibited by the catalytic system also allowed the alcoholic coupling partner to be changed from MeOH to a wide range of alcohols having diverse functionalities. The mildness of the developed protocol also made it possible to employ propargyl alcohol as the coupling partner without any observation of any interference of the terminal alkyne. Selective oxidative coupling of a primary alcoholic functional group over secondary in the case of glycols and glycerols was also made possible using the developed catalyst system. To test the relevancy of Pd/Ag combined catalysis mixed Pd/Ag colloids were synthesized, characterized by TEM, XRD and XPS and applied to oxidative-esterification successfully.

Cobalt-catalyzed direct transformation of aldehydes to esters: the crucial role of an enone as a mediator

An oxidative esterification of aldehydes with alkanols catalyzed by an in situ generated low-valent cobalt system has been developed using an enone as a mild oxidant.

Direct oxidative esterification of primary alcohols and oxidation of secondary alcohols over mesoporous spherical silica encapsulated MnO2nanoparticles

In this work, a simple and efficient strategy for the fabrication of novel encapsulated MnO₂nanoparticles inside spherical mesoporous silica hollow-nanoparticles was described.

Selective Benzyl Alcohol Oxidation over Pd Catalysts

In the last decades, the selective liquid phase oxidation of alcohols to the corresponding carbonyl compounds has been a subject of growing interest. Research has focused on green methods that use “clean” oxidants such as O2 in combination with supported metal nanoparticles as the catalyst. Among the alcohols, benzyl alcohol is one of the most studied substrates. Indeed, benzyl alcohol can be converted to benzaldehyde, largely for use in the pharmaceutical and agricultural industries. This conversion serves as model reaction in testing new potential catalysts, that can then be applied to other systems. Pd based catalysts have been extensively studied as active catalytic metals for alcohol oxidation for their high activity and selectivity to the corresponding aldehyde. Several catalytic materials obtained by careful control of the morphology of Pd nanoparticles, (including bimetallic systems) and by tuning the support properties have been developed. Moreover, reaction conditions, including solvent, temperature, pressure and alcohol concentration have been investigated to tune the selectivity to the desired products. Different reaction mechanisms and microkinetic models have been proposed. The aim of this review is to provide a critical description of the recent advances on Pd catalyzed benzyl alcohol oxidation.

An Electrochemical Method for Carboxylic Ester Synthesis from N-Alkoxyamides

An electrochemical method for the synthesis of carboxylic as well as hindered esters from N-alkoxyamides has been reported. The electrochemical reaction proceeds through constant current electrolysis (CCE) by taking advantage of the dual role of n-Bu₄NI (TBAI) as the redox catalyst as well as the supporting electrolyte. Besides providing mild reaction conditions, the present protocol is free from external oxidants and conducting salts, thereby generating nitrogen as the nonhazardous side product. Additionally, the developed procedure is highly advantageous due to its short reaction time, wide substrate scope, and gram-scale synthesis.

Selective Oxidative Esterification from Two Different Alcohols via Photoredox Catalysis

Esters functionalities are important building blocks that are extensively used in the chemical industry and academic laboratories. Direct oxidative esterification from easy-available alcohols to esters would be a much more appealing approach, especially using O₂ as terminal oxidant. Inputting external energy by photocatalysis for dioxygen activation, a mild and simple method for ester synthesis from two different alcohols has been achieved in this work. This reaction is performed under neutral conditions using O₂ as the terminal oxidant. A variety of primary alcohols, especially long chain alcohols and secondary alcohols are tolerated in this system.

Supported palladium nanoparticles as switchable catalyst for aldehyde conjugate/s and acetate ester syntheses from alcohols

Polymer-supported Pd(0) (Pd@PS) nanoparticles (NPs) were explored as a switchable catalyst for oxidative aldehyde conjugate/s (AC/s) and acetate esters (AEs) syntheses from alcohols.

Dehydrogenative coupling promoted by copper catalysts: a way to optimise and upgrade bio-alcohols

A one-pot one-step transformation of butanol into butyl butanoate takes place with excellent yield on a Cu/ZrO₂ catalyst.

Chemoselective dehydrogenative esterification of aldehydes and alcohols with a dimeric rhodium(ii) catalyst

A dimeric rhodium(ii) complex catalyses the chemoselective dehydrogenative esterification of aldehydes and alcohols.

Dehydrogenative cross-coupling of aldehydes with alcohols as well as dehydrogentive cross-coupling of primary alcohols to produce esters have been developed using a Rh-terpyridine catalyst. The catalyst demonstrates broad substrate scope and good functional group tolerance, affording esters highly selectively. The high chemoselectivity of the catalyst stems from its preference for dehydrogenation of benzylic alcohols over aliphatic ones. Preliminary mechanistic studies suggest that the active catalyst is a dimeric Rh(ii) species, operating via a mechanism involving metal–base–metal cooperativity.

Theoretical mechanistic investigation of zinc(ii) catalyzed oxidation of alcohols to aldehydes and esters

Theoretical mechanistic (DFT) study of the Zn(ii) catalyzed oxidation of benzylic alcohol to aldehyde and esters with H₂O₂ oxidant is supportive to intermediate sphere mechanism over inner sphere mechanism.

A NCS mediated oxidative C-H bond functionalization: direct esterification between a C(sp(3))-H bond and carboxylic acids

A transition metal free oxidative C-H bond functionalization/esterification of α-alkoxy alkanes with acids is described in this report. This method is effectively mediated by NCS instead of traditional oxidants, like TBHP or its derivatives, and directly generates the esterification products in moderate to high yield under mild conditions. This tranformation constitutes a practical and general approach toward various α-acyloxy ethers with broad substrate generality; alkyl-, aryl-, alkenyl- and alkynyl-carboxylic acids are all well tolerated.

Ultrasound assisted direct oxidative esterification of aldehydes and alcohols using graphite oxide and Oxone

A sonochemical procedure for direct oxidative esterification of aldehydes and alcohols using graphite oxide and Oxone in an alcoholic solvent is described. Mild reaction conditions, short reaction times, cost-effectiveness, and facile isolation of the products make the present system as a practical method.

Direct oxidative esterification of alcohols and hydration of nitriles catalyzed by a reusable silver nanoparticle grafted onto mesoporous polymelamine formaldehyde (AgNPs@mPMF)

Oxidative esterification and hydration of nitriles are catalyzed by a newly synthesized AgNPs@mPMF. The catalyst is well characterized and reusable.

A tunable process: catalytic transformation of renewable furfural with aliphatic alcohols in the presence of molecular oxygen

The tunable efficient transformation of furfural with aliphatic alcohols in the presence of molecular oxygen is achieved in the presence of a nano Au catalyst.

DMSO/I2 mediated C–C bond cleavage of α-ketoaldehydes followed by C–O bond formation: a metal-free approach for one-pot esterification

One-pot I₂/DMSO mediated metal-free C–C bond cleavage of aryl-/heteroaryl- or aliphatic α-ketoaldehydes offering a carboxylic acid followed by esterification is presented.

Pd/C-catalyzed aerobic oxidative esterification of alcohols and aldehydes: a highly efficient microwave-assisted green protocol

We herein describe an environmentally friendly microwave-assisted oxidative esterification of alcohols and aldehydes in the presence of molecular oxygen and a heterogeneous catalysis (Pd/C, 5 mol %). This efficient and ligandless conversion procedure does not require the addition of an organic hydrogen acceptor. The reaction rate is strongly enhanced by mild dielectric heating. Furthermore, it is a versatile green procedure which generally enables the isolation of esters to be carried out by simple filtration in almost quantitative yields.

Selective oxidation of alcohols to esters using heterogeneous Co3O4-N@C catalysts under mild conditions

Novel cobalt-based heterogeneous catalysts have been developed for the direct oxidative esterification of alcohols using molecular oxygen as benign oxidant. Pyrolysis of nitrogen-ligated cobalt(II) acetate supported on commercial carbon transforms typical homogeneous complexes to highly active and selective heterogeneous Co3O4-N@C materials. By applying these catalysts in the presence of oxygen, the cross and self-esterification of alcohols to esters proceeds in good to excellent yields.

New trends in bismuth-catalyzed synthetic transformations

This review covers uses of bismuth catalysts since 2005 with a special emphasis on the emerging applications of such catalysts. Low toxicity, low catalytic loading, synergistic effects with other catalysts, and some hydrocompatibility properties confer to bismuth salts major advantages. The expanding activity in the field clearly highlights the growing potential of bismuth catalysts. The article is not a comprehensive review on bismuth catalysis but a selection of its most promising uses in challenging synthetic transformations.