Tetrahedron Letters

Reductive cleavage versus hydrogenation of allyl aryl ethers and allylic esters using sodium borohydride/catalytic ruthenium (III) in various aqueous solvent mixtures

JH Babler, NA White, E Kowalski, JR Jast

Index: Babler, James H.; White, Nicholas A.; Kowalski, Eric; Jast, Jeffrey R. Tetrahedron Letters, 2011 , vol. 52, # 7 p. 745 - 748

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Citation Number: 7

Abstract

The reduction of allyl aryl ethers using sodium borohydride in the presence of a catalytic amount of ruthenium (III) chloride in various aqueous solvent mixtures at 0° C was examined. In aqueous tetrahydrofuran, hydrogenation was the favored pathway (85–100% yield of the corresponding aryl propyl ether); whereas in aqueous N-methylformamide, reductive cleavage predominated (4: 1 mixture of phenolic product/aryl propyl ether). In ...