One-Pot Three-Component Coupling of Arylhydrazines with Aryl Aldehydes to Access the Triarylmethane Scaffold

We herein report a one-pot, three-component coupling of arylhydrazine HCl salts with aryl aldehydes to synthesize a triarylmethane scaffold. This reaction proceeds under simple, mild, and practical conditions without the need for an additional Bro̷nsted or Lewis acid additive, accommodating a broad substrate scope with good to excellent yields. Furthermore, this methodology can be scaled up and allows access to a diverse range of triarylmethane derivatives. Mechanistic studies suggest that the in situ formed hydrazone intermediate is essential for the high efficiency and selectivity of this transformation.