title: Excited-state intramolecular proton transfer in o-hydroxybiaryls: a new route to dihydroaromatic compounds.
abstract: An excited-state intramolecular proton transfer (ESIPT) from the phenol OH to the 7'-carbon on the naphthyl ring in o-(1-naphthyl)phenol (3) and 1-(1'-naphthyl)-2-naphthol (4) leads to efficient (Phi = 0.1-0.2) formation of the corresponding dihydrobenzoxanthenes (5 and 7) via quinone methide intermediates. This new reaction represents a clean, efficient, and high-yielding route to benzoxanthenes and dihydrobenzoxanthenes. A related ESIPT of similar efficiency has been detected at the 2'-aromatic position in these systems, by deuterium labeling studies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Box 3065, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada V8W 3V6.
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lukeman
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Wan