The purpose of the work presented in this talk was to investigate the effects of simultaneous cooling while heating on a microwave promoted reaction. This is a concept that has generated debate over the last year. It allows for simultaneous cooling of a reaction with compressed air whilst heating it with a substantial microwave power. In principle, it allows for higher levels of microwave energy to be introduced into a reaction whilst maintaining the mixture at a particular temperature. It has been suggested that this can result in higher product yields and new pathways that were previously unattainable. We decided to look for the potential alteration of the ester- to acid ratio in a Heck coupling reaction. Specifically, the Heck coupling of 4-bromoacetophenone and tert-butyl acrylate in water was used to determine the effectiveness of simultaneous cooling. Reactions were run varying the temperature conditions, and whether or not the cooling feature on the microwave was used. The results will be presented together with our conclusions on the applicability of the technique.
Back to Symposia: Microwave Chemistry
Back to The 33rd Northeast Regional Meeting (July 14-17, 2005)