A Convenient Method for Protection and Deprotection of Alcohols and Phenols as Alkylsilyl Ethers Catalyzed by Iodine Under Microwave Irradiation

Abstract Irradiation of alcohols or phenols with tert-butyldimethylsilyl chloride (TBDMSCl) or trimethylsilyl chloride (TMSCl) in presence of catalytic amount (20 mol%) of iodine in a microwave oven for 2 min gives the corresponding silyl ethers in excellent yield. Iodine in methanol deprotects the silyl ether into its parent alcohol or phenol under similar reaction conditions.