Visible-Light-Mediated Additive-Free Decarboxylative Ketonization Reaction of Acrylic Acids: An Access to α‑Thiocyanate Ketones

Visible-light-mediated
additive-free decarboxylative functionalization
of acrylic acids has been developed. The reaction uses inexpensive
organic dye 9,10-dicyanoanthracene as a photocatalyst and uses the
ubiquitous dioxygen as both an oxygen source and an oxidant. Through
this mild and environmentally friendly method, a series of important
α-thiocyanate ketones can be generated from easily available
acrylic acids and ammonium thiocyanate. In addition, the facile transformation
of product α-thiocyanate ketones makes this method have great
potential for application in organic and pharmaceutical chemistry.