Electrochemical synthesis of 2,5-disubstituted-1,3,4-thiadiazoles via oxidative cyclization of benzothiohydrazides and aldehydes catalyzed by tetra-n-butylammonium iodide

Abstract

In this letter, we present the synthesis of 2,5-disubstituted-1,3,4-thiadiazoles by the oxidative cyclization reaction between benzothiohydrazides and aldehydes. The reaction mixture is electrolyzed by using reticulated vitreous carbon (RVC) and platinum as anode and cathode respectively. The tetra-n-butylammonium iodide played dual role as supporting electrolyte as well as catalyst. Further, this method is an example for green organic synthesis since it avoids the need of stoichiometric amount of oxidants and atom economies are high.