Electrochemical technique and copper-promoted transformations: selective hydroxylation and amination of arylboronic acids.

An efficient and selective electrosynthesis of phenols and anilines from arylboronic acids in aqueous ammonia is achieved in an undivided cell. By simply changing the concentration of aqueous ammonia and the anode potential, good yields of phenols and anilines can be obtained chemoselectively with high reaction rates. We propose that anodic oxidation could have played an important role in these transformations.