Copper-Catalyzed Aerobic Oxidation of 2-Arylmethyl Benzimidazoles

Copper-catalyzed aerobic oxidation of 2-arylmethylidene-1H-benzo [d]imidazoles under air and basic conditions was examined in detail.With copper acetate as the catalyst and sodium hydroxide as the base in DMF at 120 for ℃ 24 h, the reaction afforded the corresponding ketones via oxidation of benzylic C-H bond in good yields.Various 2-aryloyl-1H-benzimidazole derivatives were synthesized by the above method, and the structure was characterized by 1 H NMR and 13 C NMR.