November 2021

The Account describes recent advances, from the authors’ laboratories, in the synthesis of diverse libraries of small-molecule building blocks employing ionic liquids (ILs). The ability of ILs to act as catalysts/promoters/solvents for electrophilic and onium ion chemistry, as well as in metal-mediated cross-coupling reactions, and the potential to sequence/hyphenate these methods, have opened up new opportunities for facile assembly of functional small molecules with increased complexity from readily available precursors. While Brønsted acidic IL/IL solvent mixtures are suitable media for carbocation and onium ion chemistry, piperidine-appended IL/IL solvent mixtures can successfully catalyze a variety of base-catalyzed reactions. Several widely practiced transformations including ‘name reactions’ were adapted and performed efficiently in ILs.1 Introduction2 Aryldiazonium Salts and Aryltriazenes as Coupling Partners in Metal-Mediated C–C Cross-Coupling Reactions in ILs3 Expanding the Scope of Metal-Mediated Cross-Coupling Reactions in ILs4 Application of ILs in Synthesis and Functionalization of Hetero­cycles5 Expanding the Scope of Amide Synthesis in ILs6 Generation and Chemistry of ‘Tamed’ Propargylic Cations in ILs7 Newer Nitration Methods for Arenes and Heteroarenes in ILs8 Halofunctionalization in ILs9 ‘Name Reactions’and Other Widely Practiced Synthetic Transformations in ILs9.1 The Biginelli Reaction9.2 Nitrile Synthesis by the Schmidt Reaction9.3 Rupe Rearrangement9.4 Synthesis of 1,3-Dioxanes via Prins Reaction in [BMIM(SO3H)][OTf]9.5 Synthesis of Cyclopropanes and Oxiranes by the Corey–Chaykovsky (CC) Reaction10 Conclusions and Closing Remarks

The Account describes recent advances, from the authors’ laboratories, in the synthesis of diverse libraries of small-molecule building blocks employing ionic liquids (ILs). The ability of ILs to act as catalysts/promoters/solvents for electrophilic and onium ion chemistry, as well as in metal-mediated cross-coupling reactions, and the potential to sequence/hyphenate these methods, have opened up new opportunities for facile assembly of functional small molecules with increased complexity from readily available precursors. While Brønsted acidic IL/IL solvent mixtures are suitable media for carbocation and onium ion chemistry, piperidine-appended IL/IL solvent mixtures can successfully catalyze a variety of base-catalyzed reactions. Several widely practiced transformations including ‘name reactions’ were adapted and performed efficiently in ILs.1 Introduction2 Aryldiazonium Salts and Aryltriazenes as Coupling Partners in Metal-Mediated C–C Cross-Coupling Reactions in ILs3 Expanding the Scope of Metal-Mediated Cross-Coupling Reactions in ILs4 Application of ILs in Synthesis and Functionalization of Hetero­cycles5 Expanding the Scope of Amide Synthesis in ILs6 Generation and Chemistry of ‘Tamed’ Propargylic Cations in ILs7 Newer Nitration Methods for Arenes and Heteroarenes in ILs8 Halofunctionalization in ILs9 ‘Name Reactions’and Other Widely Practiced Synthetic Transformations in ILs9.1 The Biginelli Reaction9.2 Nitrile Synthesis by the Schmidt Reaction9.3 Rupe Rearrangement9.4 Synthesis of 1,3-Dioxanes via Prins Reaction in [BMIM(SO3H)][OTf]9.5 Synthesis of Cyclopropanes and Oxiranes by the Corey–Chaykovsky (CC) Reaction10 Conclusions and Closing Remarks