Palladium-Catalyzed Denitrative Mizoroki–Heck Reactions of Aryl or Alkyl Olefins with Nitrobenzenes

Abstract Palladium-catalyzed Mizoroki–Heck reactions of monosubstituted olefins with nitrobenzenes via C–NO2 bond activation has been reported. In these transformations, the combination of Pd(acac)2 and Brettphos as ligand was chosen as the best catalytic system, CsF was proved to be the best base, and cyclohexane was the best solvent. More importantly, 7–9 equiv of nitrobenzene were necessary for this reaction to achieve excellent yields. Styrenes and nitrobenzenes with various substituents can well be used in these processes, and a variety of (E)-1,2-diarylethylene derivatives were synthesized.