Wanying Yan

Chemoselective cyclizations of 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds with hydroxyketones for the selective formation of two 2,3,5-trisubstituted furans have been reported. While TsOH-mediated cyclization in DCM afforded 2-acylfurans, the additional copper catalyst in acetone turned over the selectivity for the generation of 3-arylfurans. The featured advantages of both reactions include simple conditions, high yielding, broad substrate scope, gram scalability, and release of H2O as the sole byproduct.