Trifluoromethylation of heterocycles via visible light photoredox catalysis

A method has been developed for the visible light-induced trifluoromethylation of heterocyclic compounds. A variety of electron-rich heterocycles were transformed into trifluoromethylated products by using CF3I as the trifluoromethyl radical source and Ru(bpy)(3)Cl-2 as the photocatalyst under mild reaction conditions. This operationally simple and eco-friendly process can introduce trifluoromethyl groups without prefunctionalization. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.