Tunable Aryl Imidazolium Recyclable Ionic Liquid with Dual Brønsted-Lewis Acid as Green Catalyst for Friedel-Crafts Acylation and Thioesterification

Rare Earth Amide-Catalyzed Direct Thioesterification of Aldehydes with Thiols under Mild Conditions

Direct thioesterification of aldehydes with thiols catalyzed by readily accessible rare earth/lithium amide RE[N(SiMe3)2]3(μ-Cl)Li(THF)3 is developed, which enables the preparation of a range of thioesters (31 examples) under room temperature and solvent-free conditions, without using any additive or external oxidant. This method provides a straightforward and atom-efficient approach for the thioester synthesis.

Friedel-Crafts acylation of benzene derivatives in tunable aryl alkyl ionic liquids (TAAILs)

An iron(III) chloride hexahydrate-catalyzed Friedel-Crafts acylation of benzene derivatives in tunable aryl alkyl ionic liquids (TAAILs) has been developed. Through optimization of the metal salt, reaction conditions and ionic liquids, we were able to design a robust catalyst system that tolerates different electron-rich substrates under ambient atmosphere and allows for a multigram scale.

Mechanism of Friedel-Crafts Acylation Using Metal Triflate in Deep Eutectic Solvents: An Experimental and Computational Study

In this paper, we develop a method for Friedel-Crafts acylation using metal triflate in deep eutectic solvents. Various metal triflates were tested and provided good to excellent yields of corresponding ketone products. The density functional theory calculation revealed the metal effects on the formation of active intermediate acylium triflate as well as the acidic condition. The metal triflate in the deep eutectic solvent can be recovered and reused with a little loss in the catalytic activity.

Enabling Sustainable Chemistry with Ionic Liquids and Deep Eutectic Solvents: A Fad or the Future?

Ionic liquids (ILs) and deep eutectic solvents (DESs) debuted with a promise of a superior sustainability footprint due to their low vapor pressure. However, their toxicity and high cost compromise this footprint, impeding their real-world applications. Fortunately, their property tunability through a rational selection of precursors, including bioderived ones, provides a strategy to ameliorate toxicity, lower cost, and endow new functions. This Review discusses whether ILs and DESs are sustainable solvents and how they contribute to sustainable chemical processes.

Thionyl Fluoride-Mediated One-Pot Substitutions and Reductions of Carboxylic Acids

Thionyl fluoride (SOF₂) is an underutilized reagent that is yet to be extensively studied for its synthetic applications. We previously reported that it is a powerful reagent for both the rapid syntheses of acyl fluorides and for one-pot peptide couplings, but the full scope of these nucleophilic acyl substitutions had not been explored. Herein, we report one-pot thionyl fluoride-mediated syntheses of peptides and amides (35 examples, 45-99% yields) that were not explored in our previous study. The scope of thionyl fluoride-mediated nucleophilic acyl substitutions was also expanded to encompass esters (24 examples, 64-99% yields) and thioesters (11 examples, 24-96% yields). In addition, we demonstrate that the scope of thionyl fluoride-mediated one-pot reactions can be extended beyond nucleophilic acyl substitutions to mild reductions of carboxylic acids using NaBH₄ (13 examples, 33-80% yields).

Mild and Efficient Tunable Brønsted Acidic Ionic Liquid Catalyzed O-Acetylation and O-Trimethylsilylation with Trimethylsilyl Acetate (TMSOAc) and Hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS)

This report discloses a mild and efficient O-acetylation using easily accessible TMSOAc as a novel acetyl reagent and O-trimethylsilylation using HMDS for various alcohols catalyzed by tunable Brønsted acidic ionic liquids (TBAILs). Imidazolium-based TBAILs were prepared by a two-step atom-economic reaction and acidities measured by using UV-visible spectroscopy. Both protections for alcohols were accomplished at room temperature with good to excellent yields, while the products and TBAILs were separated by simple work-up for O-silylation and column chromatography for O-acetylation. Notably, with the simple post-process, TBAILs catalyst in this solvent free method easily recovered and recycled several times without significant degradation.