Efficient Catalysis of Aqueous Morita-Baylis-Hillman Reactions of Cyclic Enones by a Bicyclic Imidazolyl Alcohol

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)In this paper a new phosphorus-free catalyst for the Morita-Baylis-Hillman reaction is disclosed. A bicyclic imidazolyl alcohol having a Lewis basic center associated with a hydrogen-bond donor group was used as catalyst for the reaction. Aliphatic cycloalkanones such as 2-cyclopentenone and 2-cyclohexanone and aliphatic and aromatic aldehydes were used successfully, and the reaction was found to work nicely using water as solvent in the presence of a phase-transfer additive.3568616866Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion (MICINN) [AYA2009-13920-C02-02]Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion (MICINN) [AYA2009-13920-C02-02