Catalyst-free photoinduced processes in aqueous medium represent significant advancement toward development of green and sustainable pathways in organic synthesis. tert-Butyl hydroperoxide (TBHP) is a widely used oxidant in organic reactions, where the decomposition of TBHP into its radicals by metal catalysts or other reagents is a key factor for efficient catalytic outcome. Herein, we report a simple and environmentally friendly visible light-promoted synthetic pathway for the synthesis of N-heterocyclic moieties, such as quinazolinones and quinoxalines, in the presence of TBHP as an oxidizing agent in aqueous medium that requires no catalysts/photocatalysts. The enhanced rate of decomposition to generate free radicals from TBHP upon visible light irradiation is the driving force for the domino reaction.
Catalyst-free photoinduced processes in aqueous medium represent significant advancement toward development of green and sustainable pathways in organic synthesis. tert-Butyl hydroperoxide (TBHP) is a widely used oxidant in organic reactions, where the decomposition of TBHP into its radicals by metalcatalysts or other reagents is a key factor for efficient catalytic outcome. Herein, we report a simple and environmentally friendly visible light-promoted synthetic pathway for the synthesis of N-heterocyclic moieties, such as quinazolinones and quinoxalines, in the presence of TBHP as an oxidizing agent in aqueous medium that requires no catalysts/photocatalysts. The enhanced rate of decomposition to generate free radicals from TBHP upon visible light irradiation is the driving force for the domino reaction.
The search for green
and sustainable synthetic protocols for organic
transformations is an urgent need for obtaining fine chemicals and
bioactive compounds. Quinazolinone and quinoxalinecores are privileged
nitrogenous heterocycles, owing to their existence in a variety of
bioactive natural products (Scheme ), and play a significant role in medicinal chemistry
as anticancer agents, anti-inflammatory agents, antibacterial agents,
and anticonvulsant piriqualone.[1−5] In addition, some of the quinazolinones are known to have therapeutic
values in the treatment of tuberculosis. Consequently, development
of sustainable, cost-effective, and more efficient methods for the
preparation of these heterocycles is of continuous interest. The classical
method of quinazolinone synthesis involves condensation of aldehydes
and 2-aminobenzamides, resulting in aminal intermediates followed
by their oxidation to quinazolinones. However, the use of chemically
unstable aldehydes as starting materials and hazardous oxidants, such
as KMnO4, CuCl, 2,3-dichloro-5,6-dicyano-1,4-benzoquinone
(DDQ), etc., causes significant limitations to this method.[6,7] Among several synthetic strategies developed so far, direct oxidative
cyclization leading to N-heterocyclic rings has received significant
importance due to the wide availability of the starting materials,
anthranilamides, and alcohols.[8,9] However, a catalytic
approach is necessary for achieving high activity and selectivity
as the reaction involves dehydrogenation of both C–H and N–H
bonds in a one-pot procedure. Various transition metalcomplexes,
such as Ir, Pd, Cu, etc., show efficient activity for the synthesis
of these heterocycles; however, most of the reactions are performed
either at elevated temperatures or involve organic solvents.[10−15] Considering the great emphasis on green and sustainable chemistry,
development of environmentally friendly catalytic processes using
water as a nontoxic and abundant solvent is one of the prime challenges.
Recently, Kundu et al. reported the synthesis of N-heterocyclic moieties
using Ircomplexes in water medium under reflux conditions.[16] Hu et al. also reported the catalyst-free synthesis
of quinazolinones using aldehydes as the starting material in aqueous
medium at high temperatures (120–130 °C).[17] However, alcohols are the preferred starting materials
over aldehydes in organic synthesis due to their wide availability
and stability. Several other methodologies, including precious and
nonprecious metals with O2 or the transition metal-free
KOH system, have also been developed for the synthesis of 2-arylquinazolinone.[18−23] Free radical chemistry is a powerful tool in the construction of
useful reactive intermediates under mild reaction conditions, and
various synthetic strategies have been adopted for the generation
of free radicals and the use of these radical intermediates in organic
synthesis. TBHP is a cost-effective and widely used oxidant and radical
initiator. TBHP is relatively stable as compared to H2O2 toward thermal decomposition and has been certified for truck
shipment in many countries.[24] Various heterogeneous
catalysts, such as ZnI2, α-MnO2, Fe3O4-CND, etc., show efficient catalytic activity
for the quinazolinone synthesis when coupled with TBHP as an oxidant.[8,25,26] The catalytic efficiencies of
TBHP-mediated reactions largely depend on the rate of TBHP decomposition
into its radicals induced by supporting metal-based catalytic systems.
Hence, the objective is to look for a green catalytic pathway to increase
the TBHP decomposition rate, which can subsequently catalyze the desired
chemical reaction.
Scheme 1
Biologically Active Quinazolinones
Over the years, visible light irradiation has become an
environmentally
friendly and economic source of energy for various useful and unique
organic reactions. Visible light provides an alternative and more
sustainable pathway for organic transformations with excellent functional
group tolerance under mild reaction conditions.[27,28] Various photocatalysts, such as Ru(II)- and Ir(III) metal-based
molecular systems, dyes, and semiconducting nanoparticles, have been
developed for visible light-catalyzed organic transformations.[29−35] Recently, N-hydroxyphthalimide (NHPI) has been developed as an effective
organophotoredox catalyst for cyclization reactions.[36] TBHP is well-known to form free radicals at elevated temperatures
through the homolysis of the O–O bond, which is potentially
used for the oxidation of benzylic alcohol and the C–H bond.[37,38] We envisioned that t-BuOO• free radicalscan be
generated through the homolysis of O–H bonds under visible
light without the presence of external photocatalysts. Satisfyingly,
our strategy worked well, which could be harnessed for the synthesis
of quinazolinones from benzyl alcohol as a starting material through
a one-pot cascade reaction. The involvement of α-hydroxyalkyl
or alkoxy radical intermediates led to the formation of aldehydes,
which undergo cyclization in the presence of benzylamides to yield
the final products, thus providing a simple, catalyst-free strategy
to obtain these biologically important moieties in water under mild
reaction conditions (Scheme ).
Scheme 2
Reactive Oxy Free Radical Generated
from TBHP
Results and Discussion
The initial assessment for the synthesis of quinazolinones by visible
light irradiation using TBHP without the presence of any other photocatalyst
was obtained by performing a model reaction between benzyl alcohol
and anthranilamide. In the presence of 1.0 equiv of TBHP, 24% of the
desired product 2-phenylquinazolin-4(3H)-one (3aa)
was obtained after 12 h of white-light illumination in water at 25
°C (entry 1, Table ). The product yield was enhanced to 63% when the TBHPconcentration
was increased to 2.0 equiv and 89% using 3.2 equiv of TBHP, keeping
all of the other conditions similar (entries 2 and 3, Table ). A further increase in the
TBHP amount resulted in no appreciable increase of the product yield
(entry 4, Table ).
The results were pleasantly surprising as the use of other commercially
available oxidants, such as H2O2, di-tert-butyl hydroperoxide (DTBP), or urea peroxide, did not
result in a satisfactory yield of the desired product under similar
reaction conditions (entries 6–8, Table ). To compare the photolytic behavior of
TBHP with thermolysis, we performed the model reaction at 90 °C
in the presence of 3.2 equiv of TBHP in the absence of visible light
irradiation, which resulted in only 36% of the desired product (entry
5, Table ). The results
suggest that visible light played a critical role in TBHP activation
for the cyclo-oxidative reaction. Among all of the solvents screened,
performing the reaction in water as the solvent afforded the best
yield of quinazolinone. Performing the reaction under a N2 environment did not have a significant impact on the product yield
(entry 9, Table ).
Additionally, to confirm the role of visible light in the reaction,
the progress of the reaction was monitored by turning off the visible
light source from time to time. Negligible progress in the formation
of the C–Ncoupling product was observed without visible light
irradiation (Figure ).
Table 1
Optimization of Reaction Conditionsa
entry
catalyst
oxidant
solvent
yieldb (%)
sel (%)
1
TBHP (1 equiv)
H2O
24
88
2
TBHP (2 equiv)
H2O
53
86
3
TBHP (3.2 equiv)
H2O
89
97
4
TBHP (5.0 equiv)
H2O
92
98
5c
TBHP (3.2 equiv)
H2O
32
93
6d
TBHP
(3.2 equiv)
H2O
36
95
7
H2O2 (3.2 equiv)
H2O
32
53
8
DTBP (3.2 equiv)
H2O
trace
9
urea peroxide (3.2 equiv)
H2O
trace
10e
TBHP (3.2 equiv)
H2O
83
91
11
TBHP (3.2 equiv)
toluene
53
93
12
TBHP (3.2 equiv)
MeOH
26
87
13
TBHP (3.2 equiv)
DMSO
23
91
Unless otherwise
specified, all
of the reactions were carried out with benzyl alcohol (2.0 mmol, 208
μL) and 2-aminobenzamide (1.0 mmol, 136 mg) as the model substrates,
illuminated under a 40 W white light-emitting diode (LED) lamp for
12 h at 25 °C.
Isolated
yield.
Under dark conditions
at 25 °C.
Under dark
conditions at 90 °C.
Under a N2 environment.
Figure 1
Progress of the photo-oxidative coupling reaction of benzyl alcohol
and 2-aminobenzamide under visible light irradiation (pink) and in
dark conditions (green, in the absence of ambient light) under the
optimized reaction conditions. The lamp was turned off from time to
time, and the formation of the desired product quinazoline was monitored
using a gas chromatograph (GC) and the internal standard 1,4-di-tertbutylbenzene
(19.4 mg, 0.1 mol). The temperature of the reactor was maintained
up to 30–35 °C under both conditions.
Progress of the photo-oxidative coupling reaction of benzyl alcohol
and 2-aminobenzamide under visible light irradiation (pink) and in
dark conditions (green, in the absence of ambient light) under the
optimized reaction conditions. The lamp was turned off from time to
time, and the formation of the desired product quinazoline was monitored
using a gas chromatograph (GC) and the internal standard 1,4-di-tertbutylbenzene
(19.4 mg, 0.1 mol). The temperature of the reactor was maintained
up to 30–35 °C under both conditions.Unless otherwise
specified, all
of the reactions were carried out with benzyl alcohol (2.0 mmol, 208
μL) and 2-aminobenzamide (1.0 mmol, 136 mg) as the model substrates,
illuminated under a 40 W white light-emitting diode (LED) lamp for
12 h at 25 °C.Isolated
yield.Under dark conditions
at 25 °C.Under dark
conditions at 90 °C.Under a N2 environment.With the optimized reaction conditions in hand, we
evaluated the
substrate scope for the reaction. A wide range of quinazolinonescould
be synthesized using various primary alcohols as substrates that react
with 2-aminobenzamide to afford good-to-excellent yields in the presence
of TBHP under visible light irradiation. Both electron-withdrawing
and -donating substituents (−NO2, −CH3, and −OCH3) in the phenyl ring of alcoholcould be inserted into the quinazolinone skeleton with significant
yield (entries 3ae, 3af, and 3ag; Table ). Halo-substituted benzyl alcoholscould
be coupled effectively to form the corresponding quinazolinones with
good yield under the optimized reaction conditions (entries 3ab, 3af,
and 3ag; Table ).
The olefinicC=C bond of cinnamyl alcohol also persists well
under the reaction conditions and results in the corresponding quinazolinone
with 79% yield (entry 3ah, Table ). 5-Chloro-2-aminobenzamide was also found to be compatible
under the present reaction conditions and yielded the desired products
with excellent yields (entries 3ba, 3bb, 3bc, 3bd, and 3be; Table ). Heteroatom-containing
primary alcohols, such as 2-pyridinemethanol, furfuryl alcohol, and
2-thiophenemethanol, could also be coupled effectively with both
2-aminobenzamide and 5-chloro-2-aminobenzamide under the optimized
reaction conditions with theircorresponding products in high yield
(entries 3ai, 3aj, 3ak, 3be, 3bf, and 3bg; Table ). Aliphaticalcohols were not suitable as
substrates under the present reaction conditions, as we obtained a
negligible yield of the desired coupling products. The present methodology
is also suitable for large-scale synthesis as we obtained a high yield
of quinazolinone (75% yield) when the model coupling reaction of benzyl
alcohol and 2-aminobenzamide was performed on gram scale using TBHP
under visible light irradiation (Scheme ).
Table 2
Visible
Light-Mediated Synthesis of
Quinazolinone in the Presence of TBHPa
Unless
otherwise specified, all
of the reactions were carried out with alcohol (2.0 mmol) and 2-aminobenzamide
(1.0 mmol) in the presence of 70% aqueous TBHP (3.2 equiv, 3.2 mmol
= 440 μL) illuminated under a 40 W white LED lamp for 12 h at
25 °C.
Scheme 3
Preparative Synthesis of 2-Phenylquinazolin-4(3H)-one
Unless
otherwise specified, all
of the reactions were carried out with alcohol (2.0 mmol) and 2-aminobenzamide
(1.0 mmol) in the presence of 70% aqueous TBHP (3.2 equiv, 3.2 mmol
= 440 μL) illuminated under a 40 W white LED lamp for 12 h at
25 °C.From the above
studies, it could be clearly ascertained that the
formation of free radicals through the decomposition of TBHP was greatly
influenced by visible light irradiation as no other photocatalyst
was present in the medium. To confirm the hypothesis, we performed
a fluorescence-based experiment where the free radical generation
from TBHP under visible light irradiation was studied using terephthalic
acid as the probe molecule. As shown in Figure , terephthalic acid preferentially reacts
with •OH radicals to form a highly fluorescent product
(i.e., 2-hydroxy terephthalic acid).[39] Terephthalic
acid itself is weakly fluorescent; however, upon irradiation of visible
light with TBHP, the fluorescence intensity dramatically increased
with a maximum at 425 nm that was enhanced with time. For comparison,
we also performed a fluorimetric experiment at an elevated temperature
(90 °C) instead of visible light irradiation. Although the fluorescence
intensity due to the formation of 2-hydroxy terephthalic acid significantly
increased with time, it was much lower as compared to that under visible
light irradiation. This result clearly suggests that visible light
irradiation had a much more pronounced influence on the decomposition
of TBHP resulting in faster generation of •OH radicals
as compared to thermal conditions, as clearly evident from the comparative
fluorescence intensity of 2-hydroxy terephthalic acid.
Figure 2
(a) Formation of fluorescent
2-hydroxy terephthalic acid by hydroxyl
radical, (b) fluorescence spectra of an aqueous solution of terephthalic
acid and TBHP under visible light irradiation and thermal conditions
(90 °C) showing the emission of 2-hydroxy terephthalic acid,
and (c) time-dependent fluorescence changes at 425 nm due to the oxidation
of terephthalic acid by TBHP under visible light irradiation and under
thermal conditions (90 °C).
(a) Formation of fluorescent
2-hydroxy terephthalic acid by hydroxyl
radical, (b) fluorescence spectra of an aqueous solution of terephthalic
acid and TBHP under visible light irradiation and thermal conditions
(90 °C) showing the emission of 2-hydroxy terephthalic acid,
and (c) time-dependent fluorescence changes at 425 nm due to the oxidation
of terephthalic acid by TBHP under visible light irradiation and under
thermal conditions (90 °C).A few controlled experiments were performed to understand the participation
of various free radicals in the reaction. The reaction was significantly
inhibited in the presence of a radical scavenger, butylated hydroxytoluene
(BHT). This result confirms the involvement of free radicals in the
reaction mechanism. On the other hand, addition of a •OH radical scavenger, tert-butyl alcohol (TBA),
in the reaction medium had no effect on the conversion. Similarly,
addition of p-benzoquinone (BQ) as an •O2– scavenger has no impact on the reaction
(Figure ). From these
studies, it could be inferred that •OH or •O2– radicals were not involved in the
reaction mechanism and probably alkoxy free radicals were responsible
for the oxidation of alcohols to aldehydes, which were formed as an
intermediate.
Figure 3
(a) Control experiments demonstrating the effect of various
free
radical scavengers on the visible light-mediated quinazolinone synthesis:
butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT), p-benzoquinone (BQ, •O2– scavenger), and tert-butyl alcohol (TBA, •OH radical scavenger).
(b) Effect of free radical scavengers on the product yield during
the visible light-mediated quinazolinone synthesis.
(a) Control experiments demonstrating the effect of various
free
radical scavengers on the visible light-mediated quinazolinone synthesis:
butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT), p-benzoquinone (BQ, •O2– scavenger), and tert-butyl alcohol (TBA, •OH radical scavenger).
(b) Effect of free radical scavengers on the product yield during
the visible light-mediated quinazolinone synthesis.Control experiments were further carried out to gain insight
into
the reaction mechanism (Scheme ). While the visible light-mediated reaction of benzaldehyde
and 2-aminobenzamide in the presence of TBHP as the oxidant yielded
quinazolinone as the exclusive product, only dihydroquinazolinone
was obtained as the major product in the absence of TBHP. Therefore,
it can be concluded that benzaldehyde and dihydroquinazolinonecould
be the intermediates in the model coupling reaction of benzyl alcohol
and 2-aminobenzamide. TBHP not only acted as an oxidant for the conversion
of alcohol to aldehyde but also participated in the oxidation of dihydroquinazolinone
to yield the final products.
Scheme 4
Control Experiments with Benzaldehyde
and 2-Aminobenzamide as Starting
Materials
Further, to confirm the involvement
of the free radical species,
we performed the model reaction in a stepwise manner and calculated
their reaction rates (r1, r2, r3). The reaction rate
(r1) of oxidation from alcohol to aldehyde
was merely affected by the presence of a radical scavenger such as
BHT, whereas the reaction rates of condensation of aldehyde and 2-aminobenzamide
(r2) and oxidation of dihydroquinazolinone
(r3) were unaffected, thus eliminating
the involvement of any radical process. Similarly, p-benzoquinone (BQ) as an •O2– scavenger has no impact on the reaction. These results suggest that
the oxidation of the O–H bonds in the present system could
not be associated with •OH or •O2– radicals.Based on the control
experiments, a probable reaction sequence
for the quinazolinone synthesis is shown in Scheme . In the first step, which is the rate-determining
step, oxidation of benzyl alcohol to its corresponding aldehyde takes
place through the involvement of visible light-induced tert-BuO• radicals generated from TBHP. The benzaldehyde
then reacts with 2-aminobenzamide and undergoes intramolecular cyclization
to generate dihydroquinazolinone. Finally, oxidation of dihydroquinazolinone
by TBHP results in the final product quinazolinone.
Scheme 5
Proposed Mechanism
for Quinazolinone Synthesis upon Visible Light
Irradiation
The methodology could be further
extended toward the synthesis
of another important class of bioactive moieties, quinoxalines, through
the sequential oxidation of aryl-substituted α-hydroxy ketones,
followed by condensation with aryl 1,2-diamine using TBHP as the oxidant
under visible light irradiation in water. Both electron-withdrawing
and electron-donating substituents on the aromatic ring afforded the
corresponding quinoxaline product with good yield (79–93%, Table ). Further, heterocyclicfuran and thiophene groups could be introduced in the moiety under
visible light irradiation with excellent product yield (87 and 90%,
respectively; Table , 6a–6h).
Table 3
Visible Light-Mediated Synthesis of
Quinoxaline in the Presence of TBHPa
Unless
otherwise specified, all
of the reactions were carried out with α-hydroxyl ketone (1.0
mmol, 226 mg) and diamine (1.0 mmol,108 mg) in the presence of 70%
aqueous TBHP (3.2 equiv, 3.2 mmol = 440 μL) illuminated under
a 40 W white LED lamp for 8 h at 25 °C.
Unless
otherwise specified, all
of the reactions were carried out with α-hydroxyl ketone (1.0
mmol, 226 mg) and diamine (1.0 mmol,108 mg) in the presence of 70%
aqueous TBHP (3.2 equiv, 3.2 mmol = 440 μL) illuminated under
a 40 W white LED lamp for 8 h at 25 °C.
Conclusions
In summary, TBHP decomposes faster when
irradiated with visible
light to generate free radicals. This phenomenon can be successfully
applied for a straightforward synthesis of N-heterocyclic moieties
such as quinazolinone and quinoxaline in water using alcohols as the
starting materials under mild reaction conditions. This protocol that
involves no metal or external photocatalysts can be utilized for green
synthesis of important bioactive molecules through radical chemistry.
Experimental
Section
General Information
1H and 13CNMR spectra were recorded using Bruker Advance (III) 400 and 100
MHz spectrometers, respectively. Data for 1HNMR spectra
are reported as a chemical shift (δ ppm), multiplicity (s =
singlet, d = doublet, t = triplet, m = multiplet), coupling constant
(J Hz), and integration, and assignment data for 13CNMR spectra are reported as a chemical shift. Emission
spectra were obtained using a fluoromax-4p fluorimeter (HoribaYovin,
model: FM-100).
Materials
tert-Butyl
hydroperoxide
(TBHP), hydrogen peroxide, and all other chemicals were purchased
from Sigma-Aldrich, India, or Merck, India, and used without further
purification. We used Millipore water (ultrapure level) throughout
the experiments.
Photomediated Synthesis of Quinazolinone
In a typical
reaction, 2.0 mmol (208 μL) of the alcohol substrate, 1.0 mmol
(136 mg) of anthranilamide, 3.2 equiv of a 70% aqueous TBHP (440 μL)
solution, and 4 mL of H2O were taken in a reaction vial
and the mixture was exposed to visible light using a 40 W white LED
lamp for 12 h, using a homemade photoreactor system. Magnetic stirring
was performed throughout the reaction. The temperature of the reaction
was maintained at 28 °C. The progress of the reaction was monitored
using TLC and ethyl acetate and hexane as the eluent. After completion
of the reaction, the resulting mixture was extracted with ethyl acetate
(3 × 20 mL) and washed with water (1 × 15 mL). The organic
layer was dried over anhydrous sodium sulfate and evaporated under
reduced pressure to obtain the residue. The residue was purified using
silica gel column chromatography (100–200 mesh) where a mixture
of hexane and ethyl acetate was used as the eluent. The isolated products
were analyzed using NMR. The conversion and selectivity of the obtained
products were confirmed by 1HNMR.
Photomediated Synthesis
of Quinoxalines
For the quinoxaline
synthesis, 1.0 mmol (226 mg) of α-hydroxy ketone, 1.0 mmol of
diamine (108 mg), and 3.2 equiv of a 70% aqueous TBHP (440 μL)
solution were taken in a vial containing 4 mL of water and subjected
to visible light illumination using a 40 W LED lamp for 8 h. The progress
of the reaction was monitored using TLC and ethyl acetate and hexane
as the eluent. After completion of the reaction, the resulting mixture
was extracted with ethyl acetate (3 × 20 mL) and washed with
water (1 × 15 mL). The organic layer was dried over anhydrous
sodium sulfate and evaporated under reduced pressure to obtain the
residue. The residue was purified using silica gel column chromatography
(100–200 mesh) where a mixture of hexane and ethyl acetate
was used as the eluent.