Catalytic Reduction of Acetophenone Promoted with Quinuclidinol-Based Quaternary Ammonium Ionic Liquid as a Sustainable Solvent

Abstract

As a new sustainable catalyst and green solvent, ionic liquid has important applications in catalytic reduction. In this study, four quinuclidinol-based quaternary ammonium ionic liquids (ILs)were at first prepared using simple procedures, and then they were used as catalyst for acetophenone reduction. The main catalytic conditions were studied and screened through a comparison among the reaction results. It showed that the highest yield of 1-phenylethanol was 88.6% when [MenQu]Cl was used as a catalyst; the ideal solvent was ethanol; the amount of catalyst was 20 mol%, and the reaction temperature was 25 °C. More substrates were employed to validate the universality of the developed method using such an IL. Moreover, potential reaction mechanisms and an IL recovery method were also suggested, which laid the foundation for its further applications in the field of sustainable chemistry and cleaner industrial production.

Keywords

• ionic liquid
• catalysis
• reduction
• acetophenone
• mechanisms