ORGANO CYANOCUPRATES. II. REACTIONS AVEC LES CETONES α-HALOGENEES

Article abstract of DOI:10.1016/0022-328X(83)80125-9

Comparison of lithium dimethylcuprate versus methylcyanocuprate as nucleophilic methylating reagents for α-halo ketones shows better selectivity for alkylation in the case of methylcyanocuprate, especially in the mixed solvent ether/dimethylformamide.The inverse addition techniques and addition of ligands such as dimethyl maleate also improve the selectivity.Methylcopper in the presence of chelating agents gives good selectivity but the reaction is slower.