An efficient synthesis of pyridoxal oxime derivatives under microwave irradiation.

Quaternary salts of pyridoxal oxime have been synthesized by the quaternization of pyridoxal oxime with substituted phenacyl bromides using microwave heating. Microwave-assisted rapid synthesis was done both in solvent (acetone) and under solvent-free conditions. Good to excellent yields (58%-94%) were obtained in acetone in very short reaction times (3-5 min) as well as in the solvent-free procedure (42%-78%) in very short reaction times (7-10 min) too. Effective metodologies for the preparation of pyridoxal oxime quaternary salts, having the advantagies of being eco-friendly, easy to handle, and performed in shorter reactions time are presented. The structure of compound 7, in which a 4-fluorophenacyl moiety is bonded to the pyridinium ring nitrogen atom, was unequivocally confirmed by the single-crystal X-ray diffraction method.