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Updated: May 11, 2026

Facile Preparation of (2Z,4E)-Dienamides by the Olefination of Electron-deficient Alkenes with Allyl Acetate
Published on: June 21, 2017
Synthesis of arylacetates from benzylic alcohols and oxalate esters through decarboxylative coupling
Matthias F Grünberg1, Lukas J Gooßen
1Department of Chemistry, University of Kaiserslautern, Erwin-Schrödinger-Strasse 54, 67663 Kaiserslautern, Germany.
Abstract:
Follow that dream: By combining a reversible transesterification between benzylic alcohols and dialkyl oxalates with catalytic decarboxylation of the resulting esters, a regiospecific C-C-bond-forming reaction to give α-arylacetates was achieved. In the overall process, CO2 and a volatile alcohol are the only byproducts. Various α-arylacetates were thus synthesized in high yields from easily accessible starting materials in the presence of catalytic amounts of Pd(OAc)2, dppp, and DABCO (see scheme).
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