Electrochemical activation of nucleophilic substitution in aryl and vinyl halides with [CpFe(CO)2]- anion using homogeneous redox-catalysis

Article abstract of DOI:10.1016/S0022-328X(96)06540-0

The feasibility of indirect electrochemical activation of nucleophilic substitution in several non-active aryl and vinyl halides with [CpFe(CO)₂]^- by means of a specially introduced mediator (a reversible redox couple A/A^·-) has been demonstrated. The efficiency of different mediators for several aryl and vinyl halides as well as the corresponding σ-aryl and σ-vinyl derivatives of (η⁵-cyclopentadienyl)irondicarbonyl has been examined. It was shown that by carefully selecting the mediator it becomes possible to perform the electrochemically induced substitution reaction even in those cases where the substitution products are reduced irreversibly and at less cathodic potentials than the initial substrates.