5- Fluoro-2-azaadamantane N-oxyl (5-FAZADO) realizes a simple, organocatalytic aerobic alcohol oxidation system that has a wide scope under mild conditions at ambient pressure and temperature and is weakly acidic and halogen- and transition-metal-free. The oxoammonium nitrate (5-F-AZADO(+)NO(3)(-)) works as a bifunctional catalyst of 5-F-AZADO and NO(x) that enables the catalytic aerobic oxidation of alcohols by itself (a metal-salt-free system).
Regioselective C-H functionalization of N-protected 2-azaadamantane was achieved via a radical-induced bromination. The obtained 5-bromo-2-azaadamantane is readily transformed to arylated/alkylated 2-azaadamantane N-oxyls [AZADOs], which exhibit high catalytic activities for alcohol oxidation.