Synthesis of Fluoren‐9‐ones via Pd‐Catalyzed Annulation of 2‐Iodobiphenyls with Vinylene Carbonate

Abstract

A palladium‐catalyzed reaction for intermolecular selective C−H cyclocarbonylation of 2‐iodobiphenyls is described. Intriguingly, the vinylene carbonate acts as a carbon monoxide transfer agent to enable the annulation reaction. Moreover, as a versatile synthon, fluoren‐9‐one can be transformed into a variety of functionalized organic molecules, such as [1,1′‐biphenyl]‐2‐carboxylic acid, 1′H,3′H‐spiro[fluorene‐9,2′‐perimidine] and N‐tosylhydrazones.