Practical synthesis of multifunctional compounds through Pd/C-catalyzed coupling reactions

Practical approaches to multifunctional compounds through palladium on activated carbon (Pd/C)-catalyzed Heck, Suzuki and Miyaura, Sonogashira, Fukuyama coupling and others are discussed. Correlation of the properties of the heterogeneous catalysts, e.g., palladium distribution and reduction degree, with the efficiency of the reaction has been observed and largely depends upon the type of the reactions. A critical role of the solid support is supposed to help palladium highly disperse on the solid surface to form active Pd complex without aggregating to inactive palladium black. The reactions are so practical as to be applied to cost-effective large-scale production of multifunctional intermediates for drug-synthesis.