Nickel-catalyzed hydrogenolysis of unactivated carbon-cyano bonds.
Selective hydrogenolysis of C-CN bonds can allow chemists to take advantage of ortho-directing ability, α-C-H acidity and electron withdrawing ability of the cyano group for synthetic manipulations. We have discovered hydrogenolysis of aryl and aliphatic cyanides under just 1 bar of hydrogen by using a nickel catalyst. This protocol was applied in the aryl cyanide directed functionalization reaction and α-substitution of benzyl cyanides.
Department of Chemistry, IIT Bombay, Powai, Mumbai-400076, India. dmaiti@chem.iitb.ac.in.
Tuhin
T
Patra
Soumitra
S
Agasti
Atanu
A
Modak
Debabrata
D
Maiti