posted on 2022-04-05, 17:36authored byYang Long, Yanling Zheng, Ying Xia, Lang Qu, Yuhe Yang, Haifeng Xiang, Xiangge Zhou
Herein, a nickel-catalyzed synthesis
of an aryl nitrile via aryl
exchange between an aromatic amide and a simple nitrile was developed.
By using cheap, easy-to-handle, and low-toxic 4-cyanopyridine as the
cyanating source, cyanation of various aromatic amides afforded an
assortment of aryl nitriles including bioactive drugs and organic
luminescent molecules in good yields. The reaction exhibited wide
substrate scope, good functional group tolerance, and unique selectivity
that were complementary to traditional methods. Moreover, two key
nickel complexes formed by oxidative addition to each substrate are
obtained and determined by X-ray crystallography, which gave strong
support for the mechanism elucidations.