An Improved Protocol for the Preparation of 5-Substituted Tetrazoles from Organic Thiocyanates and Nitriles

Abstract

Organic thiocyanates and nitriles are converted efficiently into the corresponding 5-substituted 1H-tetrazoles by treatment with zinc(II) chloride and sodium azide in aliphatic alcohols. The presented procedure provides mild reaction conditions, short reaction times, and good to excellent yields for a wide range of substrates, including deactivated aliphatic nitriles and thermally unstable thiocyanates.

Key words

tetrazoles - nitriles - thiocyanates - cycloaddition - azides - zinc salts

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