Multicatalytic synthesis of alpha-pyrrolidinyl ketones via a tandem palladium(II)/indium(III)-catalyzed aminochlorocarbonylation/Friedel-Crafts acylation reaction.

An oxidative carbonylation reaction that generates acid chloride functionality has been developed. Furthermore, this aminochlorocarbonylation reaction has been merged with a catalytic Friedel-Crafts acylation to produce a highly efficient tandem multicatalytic synthesis of pyrrolidinyl ketones. Significant variation of the aromatic nucleophile and substrate are shown. Two examples of incorporation of this method in triple-catalytic sequences are also demonstrated.