Evaluation of cyclopentyl methyl ether (CPME) as a solvent for radical reactions

Cyclopentyl methyl ether (CPME), developed by Zeon Corporation, emerged as an environmentally-benign ethereal solvent, due to recyclability, low toxicity, safety and so on. However, its use in organic syntheses has not been developed so much. We have shown that CPME was an effective solvent for radical additions, reductions, and radical-containing one-pot reactions. Furthermore, degradation pathway of CPME under radical conditions was elucidated.