Development of the “PERFECT” direct fluorination method and its industrial applications

•The PERFECT method, which utilizes liquid-phase direct fluorination with elemental fluorine, is first reviewed.•How the PERFECT method developed is described.•Perfluorinated acyl fluorides and ketones are synthesized from corresponding non-fluorinated alcohols.•Perfluorinated compounds having functional groups are also synthesized to lead to industrial applications.•The PERFECT method can be applied to direct fluorination of some non-fluorinated polymers.

The “PERFECT” direct fluorination method for the preparation of perfluorinated compounds, which has been developed and is beeing used for manufacturing in Asahi Glass Co., Ltd., and the comparison with other liquid-phase direct fluorination methods are reviewed. A key step in the synthetic route is a liquid-phase direct fluorination reaction with elemental fluorine. Direct fluorination of a partially-fluorinated ester, which was prepared from a hydrocarbon alcohol and a perfluoroacyl fluoride, followed by thermolysis, gave a corresponding perfluorinated product and the starting perfluoroacyl fluoride recovered. The perfluorinated product is a precursor of various perfluorinated building blocks.

Graphical abstractThe PERFECT method, which utilizes direct fluorination with elemental fluorine, is reviewed. It is a powerful synthetic procedure for the preparation of various perfluorinated compounds starting with non-fluorinated alcohols.Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide