Although a number of useful synthetic reactions using bases as catalysts have been studied, the types of bases available are rather limited, and hence the formation of basic species under the conditions of electroreduction has attracted much attention from mechanistic and synthetic points of view. The use of such bases generated under the conditions of electroreduction often promotes the useful synthetic reactions such as condensations, rearrangements, and the alkylation of compounds having active hydrogen atoms with high yields and selectivities. In this article, followings are described from a view point of organic synthesis.
1) The formation and the classification of these bases generated under the conditions of electroreduction.
2) The examples of useful synthetic reactions using these bases.