Electron-donating group-substituted 2-iodoxybenzoic acids (IBXs) such as 5-Me-IBX (1g), 5-MeO-IBX (1h), and 4,5-Me(2)-IBX (1i) were superior to IBX 1a as catalysts for the oxidation of alcohols with Oxone (a trademark of DuPont) under nonaqueous conditions, although Oxone was almost insoluble in most organic solvents. The catalytic oxidation proceeded more rapidly and cleanly in nitromethane. Furthermore, 2-iodoxybenzenesulfonic acid (IBS, 6a) was much more active than modified IBXs. Thus, we established a highly efficient and selective method for the oxidation of primary and secondary alcohols to carbonyl compounds such as aldehydes, carboxylic acids, and ketones with Oxone in nonaqueous nitromethane, acetonitrile, or ethyl acetate in the presence of 0.05-5 mol % of 6a, which was generated in situ from 2-iodobenzenesulfonic acid (7a) or its sodium salt. Cycloalkanones could be further oxidized to alpha,beta-cycloalkenones or lactones by controlling the amounts of Oxone under the same conditions as above. When Oxone was used under nonaqueous conditions, Oxone wastes could be removed by simple filtration. Based on theoretical calculations, we considered that the relatively ionic character of the intramolecular hypervalent iodine-OSO(2) bond of IBS might lower the twisting barrier of the alkoxyperiodinane intermediate 16.

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It is desirable to minimize the use of rare or toxic metals for oxidative reactions in the synthesis of pharmaceutical products. Hypervalent iodine compounds are environmentally benign alternatives, but their catalytic use, particularly for asymmetric transformations, has been quite limited. We report here an enantioselective oxidative cycloetherification of ketophenols to 2-acyl-2,3-dihydrobenzofuran derivatives, catalyzed by in situ-generated chiral quaternary ammonium (hypo)iodite salts, with hydrogen peroxide as an environmentally benign oxidant. The optically active 2-acyl 2,3-dihydrobenzofuran skeleton is a key structure in several biologically active compounds.

Over the past two decades there has been a dramatic increse in the use of hypervalent iodine compounds in synthetic organic chemistry due to their mild and selective oxidizing properties. Hypervalent iodine compounds catalyze various oxidation reactions such as the oxidation of alcohols, alpha-oxidation of ketones, oxidative spirocyclization of phenols, etc. Very recently, we found that 2-iodoxybenzensulfonic acid (IBS, ), which was generated from 2-iodobenzenesulfonic acid in situ, is an extremely active and mild catalyst for the highly chemoselective oxidation of various alcohols with powdered Oxone(R) to carbonyl compounds such as aldehydes, carboxylic acids, ketones and cycloalkenones under non-aqueous conditions. In this review, we focus on the design of hypervalent iodine catalysts and review the discovery and development of the oxidation of alcohols with the stoichiometric or catalytic use of hypervalent iodine compounds.