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Updated: Apr 10, 2026

Synthesis of Esters Via a Greener Steglich Esterification in Acetonitrile
Published on: October 30, 2018
N-Heterocyclic Carbene-Mediated Oxidative Electrosynthesis of Esters in a Microflow Cell
Robert A Green1, Derek Pletcher1, Stuart G Leach2
1†Department of Chemistry, University of Southampton, Southampton, Hampshire SO17 1BJ, U.K.
Abstract:
An efficient N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC)-mediated oxidative esterification of aldehydes has been achieved in an undivided microfluidic electrolysis cell at ambient temperature. Productivities of up to 4.3 g h(-1) in a single pass are demonstrated, with excellent yields and conversions for 19 examples presented. Notably, the oxidative acylation reactions were shown to proceed with a 1:1 stoichiometry of aldehyde and alcohol (for primary alcohols), with remarkably short residence times in the electrolysis cell (<13 s), and without added electrolyte.
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