Journal
NATURE
Volume 499, Issue 7457, Pages 192-196Publisher
NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP
DOI: 10.1038/nature12284
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Funding
- University of Texas at Austin
- Welch Foundation [F-1694]
- US National Science Foundation [CHE-1059084, OCI-1053575]
- Direct For Mathematical & Physical Scien
- Division Of Chemistry [1059084] Funding Source: National Science Foundation
- Division Of Chemistry
- Direct For Mathematical & Physical Scien [1361104] Funding Source: National Science Foundation
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Methods for carbon-hydrogen (C-H) bond oxidation have a fundamental role in synthetic organic chemistry, providing functionality that is required in the final target molecule or facilitating subsequent chemical transformations. Several approaches to oxidizing aliphatic C-H bonds have been described, drastically simplifying the synthesis of complex molecules(1-6). However, the selective oxidation of aromatic C-H bonds under mild conditions, especially in the context of substituted arenes with diverse functional groups, remains a challenge. The direct hydroxylation of arenes was initially achieved through the use of strong Bronsted or Lewis acids to mediate electrophilic aromatic substitution reactions with super-stoichiometric equivalents of oxidants, significantly limiting the scope of the reaction(7). Because the products of these reactions are more reactive than the starting materials, over-oxidation is frequently a competitive process. Transition-metal-catalysed C-H oxidation of arenes with or without directing groups has been developed, improving on the acid-mediated process; however, precious metals are required(8-13). Here we demonstrate that phthaloyl peroxide functions as a selective oxidant for the transformation of arenes to phenols under mild conditions. Although the reaction proceeds through a radical mechanism, aromatic C-H bonds are selectively oxidized in preference to activated Csp3-H bonds. Notably, a wide array of functional groups are compatible with this reaction, and this method is therefore well suited for late-stage transformations of advanced synthetic intermediates. Quantum mechanical calculations indicate that this transformation proceeds through a novel addition-abstraction mechanism, a kind of 'reverse-rebound' mechanism as distinct from the common oxygen-rebound mechanism observed for metal-oxo oxidants. These calculations also identify the origins of the experimentally observed aryl selectivity.
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