Improved Process for the Palladium-Catalyzed C–O Cross-Coupling of Secondary Alcohols

An improved protocol for the Pd-catalyzed C–O cross-coupling of secondary alcohols is described. The use of biaryl phosphine L2 as the ligand was key to achieving efficient cross-coupling of (hetero)aryl chlorides with only a 20% molar excess of the alcohol. Additionally, we observed an unusual reactivity difference between an electron-rich aryl bromide and the analogous aryl chloride, and deuterium-labeling suggested that currently unidentified pathways for reduction play an important role in explaining this disparity.