Facile Synthesis of γ-Ketonitriles in Water via C(sp2)-H Activation of Aromatic Aldehydes over Cu@g-C3N4 under Visible-Light

A facile C(sp(2))-H activation of aldehyde under visible-light conditions using Cu@g-C(3)N(4)as photocatalyst and water as solvent is reported. The envisaged method involves photocatalytic intermolecular Stetter reaction using differently substituted aldehydes and acrylonitrile to produce various gamma-keto nitriles in good to excellent yield (80-95 %) and 4-10 h at r.t. Operational simplicity, ambient reaction conditions, visible-light condition, and application of the Cu@g-C(3)N(4)as photocatalyst make the envisaged protocol an efficient and highly green alternative to the existing methods for synthesis of gamma-keto nitriles.