Iron-Promoted Decarboxylation of Arylacetic Acids for the Synthesis of Aromatic Nitriles with Sodium Nitrite as the Nitrogen Source

Abstract

AbstractA new and effective method was developed for the synthesis of aromatic nitriles from arylacetic acids by using NaNO2 as the nitrogen source and Fe(OTf)3 as the promoter at 50 °C. A series of arylacetic acids underwent this transformation to give the targeted products in yields of 51–90%. Because of the mild conditions, the reaction is compatible with a broad range of functional groups, including ester, carboxy, hydroxy, acetamido, halo, nitro, cyano, methoxy, and even highly reactive formyl groups.