Amino-modified Merrifield resins as recyclable catalysts for the safe and sustainable preparation of functionalized α-diazo carbonyl compounds

Amino-functionalized polystyrene polymers derived from Merrifield resins were prepared and characterized. These basic materials were successfully employed as heterogeneous catalysts in the diazo transfer reaction to 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds, furnishing the corresponding diazo compounds in good to excellent yields and in relatively short reaction times. In addition, the work-up and purification protocols are simple and do not generate large amounts of waste, which are important features in sustainable catalysis and environmentally benign processes. The feasibility of the recovery and reuse of the amino-modified catalysts was also verified, since they can be employed up to five times without appreciable loss of catalytic activity. This straightforward procedure can be readily scaled up to gram scale, enabling the wide application of this method. The synthetic potential was demonstrated through the two-step preparation of 2-amino-N-dodecylacetamide (ANDA), a small molecule of commercial relevance.