Sodiumethanethiolate in methanol is an efficient reducing agent for gem-bromonitro compounds; treatment of the resultant nitronates with a protic acid or with N-chlorosucccinimide gives high yields of the corresponding nitro or gem-chloronitro compounds, respectively.
Various β-nitro ketones, including those bearing a β-tertiary carbon, were prepared from geminal bromonitroalkanes and trimethylsilyl enol ethers of a broad range of ketones by visiblelightphotoredoxcatalysis, which were then easily converted into β-amino ketones, 1,3-amino alcohols, α,β-unsaturated ketones, β-cyano ketones and γ-nitro ketones.