Carbonyldiimidazole (CDI) promoted direct and instantaneous thio-esterification of a carboxylic acid and thiol at ambient temperature

A simple yet efficient method is disclosed for the synthesis of a diverse range of thioester derivatives. Carbonyldiimidazole promoted esterification between a carboxylic acid and thiol was carried out at ambient temperature. The short reaction time, excellent yield, operational ease and wide functional group tolerance are the notable features of the reaction. Furthermore, the precise preparation of thioesters on a gram scale suggests the promising prospects for its industrial application. This graphical abstract demonstrates an efficient, atom-economic, functional group tolerant and fast method for thioester synthesis from alkyl/aryl acid and thiols in presence of CDI to procure numerous structurally diverse thioesters at r.t.