A Mild and Efficient Direct α-Amination of β-Dicarbonyl Compounds Using Iodosobenzene and p-Toluenesulfonamide Catalyzed by Perchlorate Zinc Hexahydrate.

A direct α-amination of β-dicarbonyl compounds has been achieved by using iodosobenzene (PhIO) as an oxidant and p-toluenesulfonamide (TsNH2) as an aminating reagent in the presence of a catalytic amount of perchlorate zinc hexahydrate. The present amination reaction proceeds quickly at rt (<30 min needed for most tested substrates) to provide the corresponding α-N-tosylamido β-dicarbonyl compounds in high to excellent yields.