Acetone Cyanohydrin as a Source of HCN in the Cu-Catalyzed Hydrocyanation of α-Aryl Diazoacetates

Abstract

A procedure for the Cu-catalyzed hydrocyanation of alpha-aryl diazoesters has been developed using acetone cyanohydrin as a source of hydrogen cyanide (HCN). It was found that the addition of trimethylsilyl cyanide (TMSCN) significantly accelerates the conversion presumably by delivering free cyanide ion in situ, thus producing various types of alpha-aryl cyanoacetates in high yields under mild conditions.