Earticle

Neopentyl arenesulfonates reacted with primary alkylmagnesium halides in the presence of $(PPh_3)_2NiCl_2$ to produce the corresponding alkylarenes. The efficiency of this coupling reaction considerably depends on the nature of catalyst and solvent. Highest yield was obtained by using three equivalents of Grignard reagent to a mixture of $(PPh_3)_2NiCl_2$ and arenesulfonate in refluxing $Et_2O$. This reaction represents a novel method allowing the efficient and creative substitution of sulfur-containing groups in aromatic compounds. It also shows that the alkyloxysulfonyl group might be a suitable alternative to halides and triflate in some circumstances.

Palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions of neopentyloxysulfonylphenyl bromides with arylboronic acids provided a variety of neopentyl biphenylsulfonates in good yields. 2-Bromo- and 4-bromobenzenesulfonates underwent the coupling reaction more rapidly than 3-bromobenzenesulfonate, while chlorobenzenesulfonate did not produce the coupling product under the standard reaction conditions.