Electrochemical C−H functionalization of (hetero)arenes—optimized by DoE

Abstract

A novel approach towards the activation of different arenes and purines including caffeine and theophylline is presented. The simple, safe and scalable electrochemical synthesis of 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoroisopropanol (HFIP) aryl ethers was conducted using an easy electrolysis setup with boron-doped diamond (BDD) electrodes. Good yields up to 59 % were achieved. Triethylamine was used as a base as it forms a highly conductive media with HFIP, making additional supporting electrolytes superfluous. The synthesis was optimized using Design of Experiment (DoE) techniques giving a detailed insight to the significance of the reaction parameters. The mechanism was investigated by cyclic voltammetry (CV). Subsequent transition metal-catalyzed as well as metal-free functionalization led to interesting motifs in excellent yields up to 94 %.