Selective nucleophilic addition of aryllithium reagents to α-ketonitriles giving ketones under microflow conditions

We report the selective nucleophilic addition of aryllithium species to acyl cyanides-electrophiles bearing both carbonyl and cyano functional groups-under catalyst-free continuous flow conditions. Using benzoyl cyanide as a model substrate, we demonstrate that the flow microreactor system enables highly selective addition to the carbonyl moiety while eliminating the cyano group as a leaving group, affording polyfunctional ketones in significantly improved yields compared to traditional batch processes.