Covalently Bound Benzyl Ligand Promotes Selective Palladium-Catalyzed Oxidative Esterification of Aldehydes with Alcohols

摘要

Esterification is a fundamental transformation in chemistry. The essential feature of esterification that particularly distinguishes it from other reactions lies in its broad utilization in industry. Up to now, esterification only largely occurs between carboxylic acid derivatives and alcohols. Aldehydes are also readily available and are bulk scale raw chemicals in industry. Theoretically, esterification of aldehydes with alcohols is an attractive alternative. However, current methods to esterify an aldehyde with an alcohol require oxidation to the acid in advance. As a result, multiple steps are involved with production of toxic irremovable byproducts, and is incongruent with the current demand of environmentally benign processes.