Wenfang Xiong

Base‐Promoted Coupling of Carbon Dioxide, Amines, and N‐Tosylhydrazones: A Novel and Versatile Approach to Carbamates

A base-promoted three-component coupling of carbon dioxide, amines, and N-tosylhydrazones has been developed. The reaction is suggested to proceed via a carbocation intermediate and constitutes an efficient and versatile approach for the synthesis of a wide range of organic carbamates. The advantages of this method include the use of readily available substrates, excellent functional group tolerance, wide substrate scope, and a facile work-up procedure.

Base‐Promoted Coupling of Carbon Dioxide, Amines, and Diaryliodonium Salts: A Phosgene‐ and Metal‐Free Route to O‐Aryl Carbamates

A phosgene- and metal-free synthesis of O-aryl carbamates is realized through a three-component coupling of carbon dioxide, amines and diaryliodonium salts. The reaction only requires a base as the promoter, providing access to a diverse array of O-aryl carbamates in moderate to high yields with excellent chemoselectivity.

Copper-Catalyzed [4 + 1] Annulation between α-Hydroxy Ketones and Nitriles: An Approach to Highly Substituted 3(2H)-Furanones.

A copper-catalyzed [4 + 1] annulation between α-hydroxy ketones and nitriles has been developed. The reaction provides a facile and efficient method for the construction of a wide range of highly substituted 3(2H)-furanones, a class of important compounds known to be associated with several biological activities.

A copper-catalyzed oxidative coupling reaction of arylboronic acids, amines and carbon dioxide using molecular oxygen as the oxidant

A Cu-catalyzed oxidative coupling reaction of arylboronic acids, amines and carbon dioxide is described for the first time in this paper. The reaction tolerates a wide range of functional groups, providing a convenient protocol for the synthesis of various O-aryl carbamates. The successful development of the transformation was enabled by the use of BF3·OEt2 as the promoter and molecular oxygen as the oxidant. Mechanistic studies suggested that the CuII carbamato complex is involved in the catalytic transformation.

Base-Promoted Formal [4 + 3] Annulation between 2-Fluorophenylacetylenes and Ketones: A Route to Benzoxepines

The first base-promoted formal [4 + 3] annulation between 2-fluorophenylacetylenes and ketones has been disclosed. The reaction proceeds through a tandem α-vinylation of ketones followed by an intramolecular nucleophilic aromatic substitution (SNAr) reaction of the in situ generated β,γ-unsaturated ketone intermediates, providing a straightforward access to a wide range of functionalized benzoxepines in moderate to high yields. The transition-metal-free methodology featured a wide substrate scope, the use of easily available starting materials, and a high functional group tolerance.

Palladium-Catalyzed Four-Component Cascade Reaction for the Synthesis of Highly Functionalized Acyclic O,O-Acetals

A palladium-catalyzed four-component cascade reaction of carbon dioxide, amines, allenyl ethers, and aryl iodides has been developed for the first time. The novel reaction allows simultaneous construction of three different new bonds (C-N, C-O, and C-C) in a single step, affording an efficient method for the synthesis of a variety of highly functionalized acyclic O,O-acetals. Excellent chemo- and regioselectivity, wide substrate scope, and good functional group tolerance are features of the method.