Acyl chlorides ortho-regioselective acylation

A further application of the metal-template effect in the ortho-regioselective acylation of phenols is represented by the direct synthesis of salicyloyl chloride and derivatives by the reaction of bromomagnesium phenolates 4 with phosgene. The reaction affords the unstable salicyloyl chloride-magnesium complexes 5 by a pathway similar to the mechanism depicted in Scheme 5.2. These intermediates can be in situ converted into the corresponding acids 6 (Scheme 5.3), esters, amides, or ketones by reaction with suitable reagents. 

Table 5.1 Ortho-regioselective acylation of phenoxymagnesium bromides with acyl chlorides...

Hoesch reaction. In most cases, a Lewis acid is necessary zinc chloride is the most common. The reaction is generally useful only with phenols, phenolic ethers, and some reactive heterocyclic compounds (e.g., pyrrole), but it can be extended to aromatic amines by the use of BCls. Acylation in the case of amines is regioselectively ortho. Monohydric phenols, however, generally do not give ketones " but are attacked at the oxygen to produce imino esters. Many nitriles... 

The acylation of arenes with alcohols has been shown to be possible using a palladium chloride catalyst in the presence of f-butylhydroperoxide. In 2-arylpyridines, substitution is directed to the ortho-position and, after initial paUadation, the formation of intermediate (59) is likely before reductive elimination yields the acylated product. The regioselective acetoxylation of indoles, at the 3-position, has been achieved using the palladium-catalysed reaction with phenyliodonium acetate. 3-Acyl indoles may also be prepared using acetyl chlorides with zirconium tetrachloride as a Lewis acid catalyst. 

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