A general approach towards catechol and pyrogallol through ruthenium- and palladium-catalyzed C-H hydroxylation by weak coordination

Abstract

An efficient ruthenium(II)- and palladium(II)-catalyzed C-H hydroxylation of aryl carbamates has been developed for the facile synthesis of catechols and pyrogallols. The reaction demonstrates excellent reactivity, regio- and chemoselectivity, good functional group compatibility and high yields. The practicality of this method has been proved by a gram-scale synthesis. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.