Formic Acid → (R)-N-[5-(2-Bromo-1-hydroxyethyl)-2-(phenylmethoxy)phenyl]formamide

Participants

Reaction Steps

A Parr hydrogenator was charged with PtO2 and 1-(4-benzyloxy-3-nitro-phenyl)-2-bromo-1-(R)-ethanol (4) (3.60 g, 10.22 mmol) dissolved in a mixed solvent of THF (25 mL) and toluene (25 mL); and the mixture shaken under an atmosphere of hydrogen at 55 psi at rt for 14 h. The hydrogen pressure was then released. To the mixture was added directly a mixture of formic acid (0.65 mL, 17.23 mmol) and acetic anhydride (1.10 mL, 11.65 mmol). The newly resulting mixture was stirred at rt for an additional 16 h. The catalyst was removed by filtration through a Celite pad and the filtrate was concentrated by rotary evaporation. The resulting residue was purified by column chromatography (silica gel, a gradient of 30:70 to 50:50 ethyl acetate/hexanes) to give the desired formamide 5 as a white solid (3.62 g, >99% yield): 1H NMR (300 MHz, CDCl3) δ 2.95 (s, 1H), 3.52 (m, 1H), 3.60 (m, 1H), 4.85 (m, 1H), 5.08 (s, 2H), 6.96 (d, 1H), 7.13 (dd, 1H), 7.39 (m, 5H), 7.88 (br s, 1H), 8.37 (dd, 1H).

Provenance & Evidence