1 Introduction
The installation of a carbonyl function in a structurally
defined framework is a very common operation which
can be pursued by manifold synthetic procedures. Oxidations
of alcohols and alkenes or rearrangements of
oxygenated compounds are viable and well-practiced
approaches for the introduction of carbonyl groups in
organic compounds. The nitro to carbonyl conversion,
also known as the Nef reaction,[1] represents an additional
option over the above cited classical methods.
Since its discovery at the end of the nineteenth century,
the Nef reaction has been widely exploited for the
generation of carbonyl systems in simple and functionalized
molecules.
[2–5] The relationship which connects
nitroalkanes and the corresponding carbonyl
systems fairly resembles that existing between alcohols
and their oxidized counterparts. As a matter of
fact, primary nitroalkanes can be converted into aldehydes
or carboxylic acids depending on the adopted
reaction conditions, while secondary nitro compounds
are transformed into ketones. This reaction was originally
designed as the hydrolysis of nitronic acids, generated
from the corresponding nitronate anions under
strongly acidic conditions. Over the years the Nef reaction
has progressively modified its nature being
nowadays carried out under different reaction conditions.
Cleavage of the C=N system can be performed
under oxidative conditions on nitronates 2 obtained
from nitroalkanes 1 using basic promoters
(Scheme 1).[6] Reducing reagents can also be applied
directly on nitroalkanes as in the classical McMurry
procedure using aqueous solutions of TiCl3
. This may
result in the formation of the oxime 3 or the carbonyl
derivative 4.
[7] The products distribution in the hydrolytic
Nef reaction is also affected by the acidity level
of the reaction medium. At values of pH >1 oximes 3
together with variable amounts of other nitroso derivatives
are often obtained while under strong acidic
conditions (pH