Functional ionic liquid [bmim][Sac] mediated synthesis of ferrocenyl thiopropanones via the “dual activation of the substrate by the ionic liquid”

Abstract

An artificial sweetener saccharin based functional ionic liquid [bmim][Sac] mediated synthesis has been explored for the first time in the organometallic field. The ionic liquid plays a critical role as the catalyst for substrate activation by directly facilitating the “solvent-free” Michael addition of thiol to ferrocenyl enone. The key to the present methodology is the dual hydrogen bonding of the saccharinate anion that is believed to play a crucial role in thiol activation. All the synthesized ferrocene thiopropanones were examined for their in vitro anti-proliferative activity.