Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale , CAS Key Laboratory of Soft Matter Chemistry , iChEM (Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemistry for Energy Materials) , Center for Excellence in Molecular Synthesis of CAS , Department of Chemistry , University of Science and Technology of China , Hefei , Anhui 230026 , P. R. China . Email: [Email]
A highly efficient electrochemical reduction of [60]fullerene-fused lactones to [60]fullerene-fused ketones, a formal process of retro Baeyer-Villiger reaction, has been achieved for the first time. The electrochemically generated dianionic [60]fullerene-fused lactones can be transformed into [60]fullerene-fused ketones in the presence of acetic acid in 85-91% yields. Control experiments have been performed to elucidate the reaction mechanism. The products have been characterized with spectroscopic data and single-crystal X-ray analysis. Moreover, the electrochemical properties have also been investigated.
