Palladium-catalyzed deallylation of allyl ethers with a xanthene phosphole ligand. Experimental and DFT mechanistic studies

A cationic xanthene phosphole palladium allyl complex efficiently catalyzes the deallylation of allyl ethers into alcohols and the concomitant formation of allyl amines. Parallel experiments and DFT calculations show that acidic catalysis plays a significant role in promoting the cleavage of the C-O bond in a 16 VE complex featuring an allyl ether as eta(2)-ligand.