Abstract
Mixed carboxylic-diphenylphosphoric anhydrides, prepared from carboxylic acid and diphenyl phosphorochloridate in the presence of triethylamine, were reduced with excess sodium borohydride to yield the corresponding primary alcohols in fair yield. It was possible to reduce carboxyl group selectively without affecting nitro, ester, amide, and conjugated double bond. It was observed that the considerable racemization occurred in the present reaction with N-benzoyl-phenylalanine.
