Oxidative Decarbonylation of Acetic and Propionic Acids: Unexpected H/D Exchange of Propionic Acid with a Solvent

摘要

A problem facing chemists engaged in study of bio-mass treatment—how to eliminate a carboxyl group from lipid fatty acids—can be solved by means of acid decarbonylation and subsequent alcohol dehydration [1]. In the present work, we demonstrated for the first time that rhodium-catalyzed joint oxidation of car- boxylic acids and CO under mild conditions leads to the oxidative decarbonylation of acetic and propionic acids to methanol (methyl acetate) and ethanol (ethyl propionate), respectively. We also observed an unusual substitution of deuterium for a hydrogen atom in the alkyl radical of the molecules of the products of oxidative decarbonylation of propionic acid.