A Visible-Light Driven Esterification of Aldehydes Catalyzed by VOSO4

An esterification of the C−H bond of aldehydes promoted by oxidovanadium(IV) sulfate, VIVOSO4, is reported. The process is mediated by visible-light, is carried out at room temperature, in absence of additives and using H2O2 as a benign oxidant. VOSO4 is a commercially available, earth-abundant metal (EAMs) salt, that does not require to be prepared. This report opens intriguing perspectives for the extended application of vanadium salts toward halogenation processes as well as for C−H activations and gives a contribution in the field of earth-abundant metals based-catalysis. (Figure presented.).