Suzuki–Miyaura synthesis of m-terphenyl thioethers and their facilitated oxidation caused by through-space π⋯S⋯π interaction

Metal-free and solvent-free synthesis of m-terphenyls through tandem cyclocondensation of aryl methyl ketones with triethyl orthoformate

Reported here is a novel cyclocondensation of aryl methyl ketones and triethyl orthoformate for the simple synthesis of m-terphenyls. In the presence of a catalytic amount of TfOH, alkyl- and chloro-substituted acetophenones produced a series of terphenyls through a tandem reaction which merged six steps into a one-pot procedure. Moreover, the corresponding ester products were obtained when using other substituted acetophenones as the starting materials under the same reaction conditions.

A facile metal-free and solvent-free benzannulation was developed for the construction of m-terphenyl derivatives starting from aryl methyl ketones and triethyl orthoformate. This is a tandem reaction which merged six steps into one-pot procedure.