Ligand-Free RuCl3-Catalyzed Alkylation of Methylazaarenes with Alcohols.
Tong-Yu FengHong-Xi LiDavid James YoungJian-Ping LangPublished in: The Journal of organic chemistry (2017)
RuCl3 efficiently catalyzes the alkylation of methylquinolines, methylpyridines, 2-methyl-benzooxazoles, and 2-methyl-quinoxalines with alkyl- or aryl-alcohols as alkylating agents. This synthetically useful and atom economical transformation does not require additional ligands. The mechanistic study indicated the alkylation reaction underwent a stepwise transfer hydrogenation, aldol condensation, and hydrogenation reaction pathway.