Site-selective D2O-mediated deuteration of diaryl alcohols via quantum dots photocatalysis.

Owing to the high synthetic value of deuteration in the pharmaceutical industry, we describe herein the conversion of a range of aromatic ketones to deuterium-labeled products in good to excellent yields. Efficient and site-selective deuteration of benzyl alcohols by D2O with visible light irradiation of quantum dots (QDs), together with gram-scale synthesis and photocatalyst recycling experiments indicated the potential of the developed method in practical organic synthesis.

Thiol Activation toward Selective Thiolation of Aromatic C-H Bond.

Direct C-S bond coupling is an attractive way to construct aryl sulfur ether, a building block for a variety of biological active molecules. Herein, we disclose an effective model for regioselective thiolation of the aromatic C-H bond by thiol activation instead of arene activation. Strikingly, this method has been applied into anisole derivatives that are not available in the arene activation approach to forge a single thioether isomer with high reactivity.

Photoelectrochemical cell for P-H/C-H cross-coupling with hydrogen evolution.

Photoelectrochemistry enables the formation of a variety of active intermediates for organic synthesis in an environmentally friendly manner. Herein, a photoelectrochemical cell is fabricated to realize activation of P-H/C-H bonds for cross-coupling hydrogen evolution. As compared with an electrochemical cell, nearly 90% external bias input is saved to drive the C-P bond construction with good to excellent yields.

Regioselective Ortho Amination of an Aromatic C-H Bond by Trifluoroacetic Acid via Electrochemistry.

A trifluoroacetic acid-facilitated ortho amination of alkoxyl arene has been established via anodic oxidation in an undivided cell. In the absence of any additional metal or oxidant reagents, a series of aromatic and heteroaromatic amine derivatives have been synthesized in good to excellent yields. Our findings reveal the possibility of achieving complete ortho-selective amination of a simple arene, which emerges as an efficient route for facile and large-scale organic synthesis.