Ni‐Catalyzed Decarboxylative Cross‐Coupling of Potassium Polyfluorobenzoates with Unactivated Phenol and Phenylmethanol Derivatives

Abstract A Ni‐catalyzed decarboxylative cross‐coupling of potassium polyfluorobenzoates with unactivated phenol and phenylmethanol derivatives is described. This novel transformation provides a practical and efficient protocol towards the synthesis of important polyfluorobiaryls and polyfluorinated diarylmethanes, and greatly enlarges the range of electrophiles utilized in decarboxylative coupling. Remarkably, preliminary mechanistic studies indicated the essential role of Zn(OAc) 2 might lie in the enhancement of decarboxylation step. magnified image