Tetrahedron Letters

Zn (OTf) 2—catalyzed direct cyanation of benzylic alcohols—a novel synthesis of α-aryl nitriles

P Theerthagiri, A Lalitha

Index: Theerthagiri, Palani; Lalitha, Appaswami Tetrahedron Letters, 2012 , vol. 53, # 41 p. 5535 - 5538

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Citation Number: 9

Abstract

This work demonstrates an efficient method to prepare α-aryl nitriles by direct cyanation of benzylic alcohol with TMSCN in the presence of a catalytic amount of Zn (OTf) 2 under heating condition. A variety of benzylic alcohols can be converted into the corresponding α- aryl nitriles in good to excellent yields.