Siegel Group's New Method for Arene Hydroxylation Reported in Nature

The Siegel Group's new method of arene hydroxylation has been reported in the journal Nature.

 

Phthaloyl peroxide, in the absence of other reagents, enables the conversion of aromatic hydrocarbons to phenols even if the substrates possess functionality that are incompatible with oxidizing conditions. This method provides a novel and direct method for the synthesis of phenols from arenes. Preliminary mechanistic studies demonstrate that the reaction proceeds through a “reverse rebound” mechanism as opposed to the classical rebound mechanism. The compatibility of the phthaloyl peroxide-mediated oxidation with a large number of functional groups makes this methodology useful for generating synthetic intermediates.

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v499/n7457/full/nature12284.html