Efficient electrochemical synthesis of 2-arylsuccinic acids from CO 2 and aryl-substituted alkenes with nickel as the cathode

Abstract

A simple and efficient electrochemical route was developed by using non-noble metal nickel as the cathode and aluminum or magnesium as an anode for the synthesis of 2-arylsuccinic acids from carbon dioxide and aryl-substituted alkenes. The electrochemical dicarboxylation of aryl-substituted alkenes and carbon dioxide could be smoothly carried out in an undivided cell containing n-Bu 4NBr-DMF electrolyte with a constant current under 4 MPa pressure of CO 2 at room temperature in the absence of additional catalysts, and the corresponding 2-arylsuccinic acids were afforded in moderate to good yields (50–87%) and high selectivity (98%). The influence of some key factors (such as electrode materials, supporting electrolyte, substrate concentration, current density and CO 2 pressure) on the results of the electrochemical synthesis was investigated, and the electrochemical reaction mechanism was also briefly discussed.