Journal
GREEN CHEMISTRY
Volume 17, Issue 12, Pages 5172-5181Publisher
ROYAL SOC CHEMISTRY
DOI: 10.1039/c5gc01040c
Keywords
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Funding
- China Scholarship Council [201406060027]
- European Commission [622724]
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Benzimidazoles and N-methylbenzimidazoles were synthesized by simply heating 1,2-diaminobenzenes in supercritical methanol over copper-doped porous metal oxides. These catalysts were derived from synthetic hydrotalcites that only contain earth-abundant starting materials. The carbon equivalents needed for the construction of the benzimidazole core originated from the solvent itself, which is known to undergo reforming to hydrogen and carbon monoxide through the formation of a formaldehyde intermediate. A variety of 1,2-diaminobenzenes were converted to the corresponding mixtures of benzimidazoles and N-methylated analogues in good yields. Interestingly, the more challenging, but readily available 2-nitroanilines, which require an additional reduction step prior to cyclization, could also be successfully converted to benzimidazoles in high selectivity. Furthermore, various other alcohols were applied besides methanol, to obtain 2-alkyl- and 1,2-dialkylbenzimidazoles. Preliminary mechanistic insights into the origins of N-alkylation as well as the reactivity of the nitro derivatives are discussed.
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