Diaryliodonium salts are demonstrated as efficient arylating agents of aliphatic alcohols under metal-free conditions. The reaction proceeds at room temperature within 90 min to give alkyl aryl ethers in good to excellent yields. Aryl groups with electron-withdrawing substituents are transferred most efficiently, and unsymmetric iodonium salts give chemoselective arylations. The methodology has been applied to the formal synthesis of butoxycaine.
Keywords: aliphatic alcohols; alkyl aryl ethers; arylation; diaryliodonium salts; hypervalent iodine.