Enantioselective Dearomatization of Naphthol Derivatives with Allylic Alcohols by Cooperative Iridium and Brønsted Acid Catalysis

Abstract

AbstractThe combination of a transition‐metal catalyst and organocatalyst was designed to achieve a highly enantioselective system for the allylic dearomatization reaction of naphthols with racemic secondary allylic alcohols. The desired β‐naphthalenones, bearing an all‐carbon quaternary center, were obtained in good yields with high chemo‐ and enantioselectivities. The cooperative catalytic system, involving a chiral iridium complex and phosphoric acid, provided measurable improvements in yields, and chemo‐ and enantioselectivities relative to single‐catalyst systems. Control experiments indicated that the chiral iridium complex functions as a key species in the control of the absolute configuration, thus enabling the formation of both β‐naphthalenone enantiomers by simply employing opposite enantiomeric ligands.