Aerobic Oxidative Dehydrogenation of Ketones to 1,4-Enediones

An efficient and unprecedented strategy for the synthesis of 1,4-enediones from saturated ketones has been developed via palladium-catalyzed oxidative dehydrogenation. The protocol employs molecular oxygen as the sole oxidant and represents an atom- and step-economic process. The approach showed broad substrate scope, good functional group tolerance, and complete E-stereoselectivity. The reaction mechanism has been investigated through deuterium-labeling experiments and intermediate experiments.