Rh(III)-catalyzed direct C-H cyanation of N-methoxybenzamides using N-cyano-N-phenyl-p-toluenesulfonamide

A new method has been developed for the mild and efficient Rh(III)-catalyzed direct C-H cyanation of a diverse range of N-methoxybenzamides using N-cyano-N-phenyl-p-toluenesulfonamide as an environmentally friendly and efficient cyanating reagent. This new reaction proceeded with good regioselectivity to provide direct access to a wide variety of valuable ortho-cyanated N-methoxybenzamides with board substrate/functional group tolerance. (C) 2015, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.