Abstract

Mild and convenient method for acetylation of alcohols with NaBH4/Cu(dmg)2 system

Author(s): Behzad Zeynizadeh, Saviz Zarrin, Shahriar Ashuri

During the past decades, sodium borohydride as a key reagent has played an important roel in the reduction of organofunctional groups in modern organic synthesis. This reagent is a relatively mild reducing agent and mostly used for the reduction of aldehydes and ketones in protic solvents. It is also know that the reducing capability of NaBH4 greatly could be accelerated by using many of additives. Therefor, controlling the reducing power of sodiumborohydride has been one of the main interests for organic chemists in many years. Transformation of alcohol to the corresponding acetates is typically carried out using NaBH4/Cu(dmg)2 in refluxing ethyl acetate in high to excellent yields.