New and convenient approach for synthesis of metconazole

In terms of environmental and food supply protection, development of green, efficient, and less toxic pesticides is of great importance and in continuous demand. Metconazole, a triazole antiseptic, possesses such advantages, being environmentally friendly and high efficiency with broad-spectrum activity against bacteria and fungi. However, previously reported synthetic routes for metconazole have many disadvantages, for example, requiring multiple steps, being complicated, and suffering from high cost. We report herein a new, convenient, and high-yield four-step (aldol condensation, dimethylation, hydrogenation, and one-pot triazolation) synthesis for metconazole with relatively low cost.