Electrochemical Benzylic C(sp3)-H Imidation Enabled by Benzoic Acid Derived Radicals.

ABSTRACT

We developed an electrochemical approach for benzylic C(sp3)-H imidation by virtue of the in situ generated oxygen-centered radicals (OCRs). The electrochemical imidation provides a complementary approach to giving distinct imide products compared with previous acyloxylation products. This protocol exhibits good site selectivity and broad substrate generality. Moreover, the utility of the OCR-mediated protocol was extended to the electrochemical oxidation of silane, and its robustness was also highlighted by the imidation of complex substrates, which would otherwise be inaccessible for previous approaches. A plausible reaction mechanism was proposed to rationalize the experimental observations.