Synthesis of Acrylamides\nvia the Doebner–Knoevenagel\nCondensation

Abstract

A selective\nsynthesis of acrylamides had been developed using the\nDoebner–Knoevenagel condensation. The reaction occurs under\nmild conditions at ambient temperatures, tolerates a wide array of\nfunctional groups, and affords the <i>E</i>-isomer with\nhigh selectivity. The reported method expands the scope of this classic\nreaction to a class of industrially important products and as well\nas to the use of aliphatic aldehydes. An organocatalytic mechanism\nhas been proposed, and the ability to scale the process has been demonstrated.