Photoinduced tandem three-component coupling of propanedinitrile, 2,5-dimethylhexa-2,4-diene, and cyanoarenes

A tandem three-component coupling photoreaction proceeds upon photoirradiation of MeCN/H2O solutions containing propanedinitrile (1, malononitrile), 2,5-dimethylhexa-2,4-diene (2), and polycyanoarenes in the presence of phenanthrene and carbonate, leading to selective alpha-monoalkylation of 1. The reaction proceeds via photo-NOCAS (Nucleophile-Olefin Combination, Aromatic Substitution) type mechanism: nucleophilic attack of the anion of 1 to photogenerated 2(*+) is followed by ipso-substitution on the radical anion of the polycyanoarene. It advances under mild, safe, and environmentally friendly conditions such as proceeding at ambient temperature without metals and halogens, and in the presence of weak base. The reaction also represents a novel and metal-free cross-coupling reaction that leads to ipso-substitution on polycyanoarene via aryl-cyano bond cleavage. In addition, the reaction is a rare example of introducing carbon nucleophile in the photoinduced electron transfer reaction, except that of cyanide ion.

Photochemical monoalkylation of propanedinitrile by electron-rich alkenes

The synthesis of monoalkylated propanedinitriles was achieved upon photoirradiation of MeCN/H(2)O solutions containing propanedinitrile (1; malononitrile) and electron-rich alkenes in the presence of lithium carbonate and a catalytic amount of 9-cyanophenanthrene or redox-type photosensitizers (electron-mediating photosensitizers), through regioselective anti-Markovnikov photochemical polar addition of 1 into electron-rich alkenes. With 2,5-dimethyl-2,4-hexadiene (2g) as an electron-rich alkene, propanedinitrile-incorporated dimer 4g was obtained.