Electrosynthesis of organic compounds.: Part II: Electrooxidative amination of 1,4-dihydroxybenzene using some aliphatic amines

The electrooxidative amination of 1,4-dihydroxybenzene (1) to give 2,5-disubstituted benzoquinones, using dimethylamine, piperidine and morpholine, as nucleophiles has been studied using cyclic voltammetry and controlled potential coulometry. The results indicate that the above-mentioned amines react with electrochemically generated p-benzoquinone via a Michael-addition reaction leading to 2,5-diamino-substituted benzoquinones. Products were obtained in good yield and purity, and were characterized by spectroscopic methods and elemental analysis.