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Updated: Oct 9, 2025

Temperature-programmed Deoxygenation of Acetic Acid on Molybdenum Carbide Catalysts
Published on: February 7, 2017
A Mechanistic Study on the Formation of Dronic Acids
Péter Ábrányi-Balogh1, István Greiner2, György Keglevich3
1Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Medicinal Chemistry Research Group, 1117 Budapest, Hungary.
Abstract:
Dronic acid derivatives, important drugs against bone diseases, may be synthesized from the corresponding substituted acetic acid either by reaction with phosphorus trichloride in methanesulfonic acid as the solvent or by using also phosphorous acid as the P-reactant if sulfolane is applied as the medium. The energetics of the two protocols were evaluated by high-level quantum chemical calculations on the formation of fenidronic acid and benzidronic acid. The second option, involving (HO)2P-O-PCl2 as the nucleophile, was found to be more favorable over the first variation, comprising Cl2P-O-SO2Me as the real reagent, especially for the case of benzidronate.
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