TBA(FeCl3Br) Complex as a Photocatalyst in the Csp3-H Bond Activation in Alcohols for the Synthesis of N-Based Heterocycles

Abstract

The TBA(FeCl3Br) complex, formed in situ by the simple mixture of FeCl3 and tetrabutylammonium bromide (TBAB) in MeCN, has been proven to be an outstanding photocatalyst to promote the selective oxidation of alcohols to aldehydes, under blue-light irradiation. Herein, we describe the synthesis of benzochalcogenazoles and quinazolinones by the reaction with suitable ortho-substituted anilines and alcohols under mild conditions. Among the green features, the method reduces the need of derivatization circumventing the use of aldehydes as substrate and allows the isolation of the quinazolinones by precipitation after washing the crude with ethyl ether, avoiding the need of purification by column chromatography.