Copper-catalyzed aerobic conversion of the CO bond of ketones to a CN bond using ammonium salts as the nitrogen source

Abstract

The conversion of the CO bond of ketones to a CN bond is described. This conversion is catalyzed by copper salts with ammonium salts as the nitrogen source in the presence of molecular oxygen. A wide variety of ketones can be converted into the corresponding compounds containing a CN bond. Based on the preliminary experiments, a plausible mechanism of this transformation is disclosed.