Synthesis of 2,3-Fused Quinazolinones via the Radical Cascade Pathway and Reaction Mechanistic Studies by DFT Calculations

An efficient radical cascade cyclization of unactivated
alkenes
toward the synthesis of a series of ring-fused quinazolinones has
been developed in moderate to excellent yields using commercially
available ethers, alkanes, and alcohols, respectively, under a base-free
condition in a short time without a transition metal as catalyst.
Notably, the transformations can be carried out with the advantages
of a broad substrate scope and high atomic economy. Density functional
theory calculations and wavefunction analyses were performed to elucidate
the radical reaction mechanism.