Palladium-Catalyzed Direct α‑C(sp3) Heteroarylation of Ketones under Microwave Irradiation

Heteroaryl compounds are valuable building blocks in medicinal chemistry and chemical industry. A palladium-catalyzed direct α-C­(sp3) heteroarylation of ketones under microwave irradiation is developed and reported in this study. Under optimized conditions, twenty-eight (28) heteroarylated ketones were prepared in this study to demonstrate the substrate scope of this reaction. The ground-state optimized structure of Pd(0) active catalyst with 2-dicyclohexylphosphino-2′,4′,6′-triisopropylbiphenyl (XPhos) in toluene, and the products of its reaction with 3-bromopyridine and acetophenone were studied using all-atom density functional theory. This study provided insightful information for palladium catalytic system design to generate heteroaryl compounds.