Selective Reductions of the Carbonyl Compounds and Aryl Halides with Ni-Al Alloy in Aqueous Alkali Medium

The carbonyl compounds and the aryl halides are efficiently reduced by Ni-Al alloy powder, in aqueous alkali medium, with or without organic solvents. The relative reactivities in a series of structurally selected reducible compounds showed a sequence of reactivity in agreement with the mechanism involving a direct electron transfer from aluminum to the organic phase. In some cases an important change in reactivity with respect to conversion of the reducing reagent was notified. Most probably this complicated variability is the result of the changes in composition and morphology of the reacting Ni-Al alloy.