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Published on: May 21, 2019
Homocoupling of benzyl pyridyl ethers via visible light-mediated deoxygenation
Jingtian Chen1, Fan Wang1, Xiang Li2
1State Key Laboratory of Metastable Materials Science and Technology, Hebei Key Laboratory of Nano-biotechnology, Hebei Key Laboratory of Applied Chemistry, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao, 066004, P. R. China. yangjingyue@ysu.edu.cn.
Abstract:
The photocatalytic coupling of ethers is uncommon because of the challenges in breaking C-O bonds and low selectivity. Herein, we report a visible light-mediated deoxygenation homocoupling of benzyl pyridyl ethers via their pyridium salts. This approach enables C(sp3)-O bond homolysis under mild conditions. Mechanistic experiments support the radical nature of the reaction. This method is highly compatible with electron-withdrawing groups and has potential applications for drug precursor synthesis.
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