Study of the asymmetric organocatalyzed [3+2] annulation of cyclopropenone and β-keto ester

Various asymmetric organocatalytic approaches for the [3+2] annulation of 1,2-diphenylcyclopropen-3-one and ethyl 3-oxo-3-phenylpropanoate have been investigated, resulting in the formation of ethyl 2-(5-oxo-2,3,4-triphenyl-2,5-dihydrofuran-2-yl)acetate in moderate yield and low enantiomeric purity.