Copper‐Catalyzed Aerobic Oxidative Dehydrogenative Coupling of Anilines Leading to Aromatic Azo Compounds using Dioxygen as an Oxidant

Abstract

In the air tonight: A novel approach to symmetric and unsymmetric aromatic azo compounds from simple anilines catalyzed by inexpensive CuBr has been disclosed. Air (or dioxygen) was used as an oxidant under mild reaction conditions, with H2O as the byproduct, to make this transformation environmentally benign and very easy to handle.