Deoxofluorination of Aliphatic Carboxylic Acids: A Route to Trifluoromethyl-Substituted Derivatives

A practical method for the synthesis of functionalized aliphatic trifluoromethyl-substituted derivatives from aliphatic acids is developed. The transformation proceeds with sulfur tetrafluoride in the presence of water as a key additive. Compared to previous methods, the reaction gives products with full retention of stereo- and absolute configuration of chiral centers.