Rapid and Effective Reaction of 2-Methylpyridin-N-oxides with Triphosgene via a [3,3]-Sigmatropic Rearrangement: Mechanism and Applications

A facile and effective synthesis of 2-chloromethylpyridines was developed by a one-pot reaction of 2-alkylpyridin-N-oxides and triphosgene at room temperature. As starting materials, N-oxides of 2-alkylpyridine derivatives, including 2-alkylpyridines, 2-methyl quinolines, and phenanthroline, can react rapidly with triphosgene in the presence of triethylamine, affording 2-chloromethylpyridines in good to excellent yields (52–95%). Using the 2-methylquinoline substrate for the mechanistic study, it has been well demonstrated that the chlorination reaction undergoes a [3,3]-sigmatropic rearrangement, which can be observed as a reversible process by monitoring the intermediates. Moreover, the chlorination reaction can be used to construct a rapid and sensitive fluorescent probe for the detection of phosgene.