title: Empowering a transition-metal-free coupling between alkyne and alkyl iodide with light in water.
abstract: Methods to assemble alkynes are essential for synthesizing fine chemicals, pharmaceuticals and polymeric photo-/electronic materials. Using light as a clean energy form and water as a green solvent has the potential to make synthetic chemistry more environmentally friendly. Here we present a transition-metal-free coupling protocol between aryl alkyne and alkyl iodide enabled by photoenergy in water. Under ultraviolet irradiation and in basic aqueous media, aryl alkynes efficiently couple with a wide range of alkyl iodides including primary, secondary and tertiary ones under mild conditions. A tentative mechanism for the coupling is also proposed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, FRQNT Center for Green Chemistry and Catalysis, McGill University, 801 Sherbrooke Street West, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3A 0B8.
authors.forename: Wenbo
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, FRQNT Center for Green Chemistry and Catalysis, McGill University, 801 Sherbrooke Street West, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3A 0B8.
authors.forename: Lu
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, FRQNT Center for Green Chemistry and Catalysis, McGill University, 801 Sherbrooke Street West, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3A 0B8.
authors.forename: Chao-Jun
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Li