Copper-Catalyzed Direct C‑2 Difluoromethylation of Furans and Benzofurans: Access to C‑2 CF2H Derivatives

We report herein the first copper-catalyzed C-2 difluoromethylation of furans and benzofurans. The developed methodology allows the selective introduction of the CF2CO2Et moiety at C-2 using CuI as a catalyst. This process was applied to a broad range of furans and benzofurans, giving the functionalized products in moderate to good yields. The resulting products were then decarboxylated to afford the highly valuable C-2-CF2H-substituted furans and benzofurans in good yields.