Imidazol(in)ium-2-carboxylates as latent, thermally activated organocatalysts for transesterification reactions

1,3-Disubstituted imidazol(in)ium-2-carboxylates (ImCO₂) were used as precatalysts for transesterification reactions of unactivated ethyl benzoate with monohydric alcohols, dihydric alcohols, and amino alcohols. Highly active N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) are usually not used directly as catalysts because of their air and moisture sensitivity. Here they were liberated in situ by thermal decarboxylation of ImCO₂ at designated temperatures. The results showed that the yield of the reactions reached up to 95% within 3 h using only 0.5 mol% catalyst. No active enol esters, molecular sieves, or a 20-fold excess of alcohol were used to drive the reaction to completion. It was proved that unsaturated imidazolium-2-carboxylates have a better activity than saturated species in this type of reaction. Different types of substituting groups of ImCO₂ exhibited varied transesterification activity.