Carbonylative Synthesis of Phthalimides and Benzoxazinones by Using Phenyl Formate as a Carbon Monoxide Source

A simple and efficient palladium-catalyzed carbonylative cyclization of N-substituted 2-iodobenzamides and 2-iodoanilides was investigated for the synthesis of phthalimides and benzoxazinones, respectively, by using phenyl formate as a CO source. The present catalytic protocol circumvents the use of an expensive phosphine ligand as well as solvent in the case of the phthalimide synthesis. Moreover, mild reaction conditions and a tolerance of various functional groups enhance the general applicability of this method.