Electrochemical Incorporation of Carbon Dioxide into Fluorotoluene Derivatives under Mild Conditions

One of the main challenges to combat climate change is to eliminate or reuse Carbon dioxide (CO2), the largest contributor to the greenhouse gases that cause global warming. It is also important to synthesize compounds through greener technologies in order to obtain more environmentally friendly solutions. This study describes the electrocarboxylation process of α,α,α-trifluorotoluene using different working electrodes (glassy carbon, silver and copper) and electrolytes (polar aprotic solvent and ionic liquid). Carboxylated compounds were obtained in the same way in both electrolytic medias with more than 80% conversion rates, high yields, good selectivity, and moderate efficiencies using silver and copper as cathodes in organic electrolytes and ionic liquids.