An Electrochemical Design for Catalytic Dehydration: Direct, Room-Temperature Esterification without Acid or Base Additives.

An electrochemical approach has been leveraged to underpin a new conceptual platform for dehydration reactions, which has been demonstrated in the context of esterification. Esters were prepared from the corresponding acid and alcohol partners at room temperature without acid or base additives and without consuming stoichiometric reagents. This methodology therefore addresses key complications that plague esterification and dehydration reactions more broadly and that represent a leading challenge in synthetic chemistry.

Harnessing Alkyl Amines as Electrophiles for Nickel-Catalyzed Cross Couplings via C-N Bond Activation.

We developed a strategy to harness alkyl amines as alkylating agents via C-N bond activation. This Suzuki-Miyaura cross coupling of alkylpyridinium salts, readily formed from primary amines, is the first example of a metal-catalyzed cross coupling via C-N bond activation of an amine with an unactivated alkyl group. This reaction enjoys broad scope and functional group tolerance. Primary and secondary alkyl groups can be installed. Preliminary studies suggest a NiI/NiIII catalytic cycle.