One pot synthesis of aryl nitriles from aromatic aldehydes in a water environment.

In this study, we found a green method to obtain aryl nitriles from aromatic aldehyde in water. This simple process was modified from a conventional method. Compared with those approaches, we used water as the solvent instead of harmful chemical reagents. In this one-pot conversion, we got twenty-five aryl nitriles conveniently with pollution to the environment being minimized. Furthermore, we confirmed the reaction mechanism by capturing the intermediates, aldoximes.