Electrochemically driven reductive cyclization of <i>o</i> -nitroanilines: synthesis of 1,2-fused benzimidazoles and benzo[ <i>d</i> ]imidazoles

Abstract

-nitroanilines and results in the desired products in yields of up to 99%. A plausible reaction mechanism was proposed on the basis of controlled experiments and cyclic voltammetry (CV) analysis. The benefits of the developed method include one-pot synthesis, open-air conditions, gram-scale synthesis and no requirement for a strong reductant.