Synthesis of 3,5-disubstituted 1,2,4-oxadiazoles using ionic liquid-phase organic synthesis (IoLiPOS) methodology

New 3,5-disubstituted 1,2,4-oxadiazoles were synthesized in five steps by ionic liquid-phase organic synthesis (IoLiPOS) methodology. The strategy involved the preparation of amidoxime from the ionic liquid-phase bound arylnitrile. Addition of various carboxylic acid to the amidoxime produced the expected 3,5-disubstituted 1,2,4-oxadiazoles via the stable O-acyl amidoxime intermediate grafted on the ionic liquid-phase. The 1,2,4-oxadiazoles were easily cleaved by transesterification under mild reaction conditions in high purity with good overall yields. The structures of the intermediates in each step were verified by routine spectroscopic analysis (1H, 13C NMR, and HRMS).