Decarboxylative Iodination of Coumarin‐3‐carboxylic Acids: A Facile Access to 3‐Iodocoumarins

Abstract A straightforward protocol for the direct conversion of readily available coumarin‐3‐carboxylic acids to the corresponding 3‐iodocoumarins is described herein. Heating acetonitrile solution of coumarin‐3‐carboxylic acids, molecular iodine and potassium hydrogen phosphate resulted in the decarboxylative iodination of coumarin‐3‐carboxylic acids via radical mechanism. Various electron rich and electron poor coumarin‐3‐carboxylic acids were compatible with the established reaction conditions and consequently afforded the corresponding 3‐iodocoumarins in (46–93 %) reaction yields with minimum purification efforts. The formed products serve as valuable precursors to streamline more complex organic compounds incorporating coumarin core.