Catalytic aza-Wittig Reaction of Acid Anhydride for the Synthesis of 4H‑Benzo[d][1,3]oxazin-4-ones and 4‑Benzylidene-2-aryloxazol-5(4H)‑ones

Compared to the aza-Wittig reaction of aldehydes, ketones, amides, and esters, the aza-Wittig reaction of acid anhydride was always overlooked, which should be an important part of Wittig reactions. Here, the aza-Wittig reaction of anhydride and catalytic aza-Wittig reaction of anhydride were both developed with high yields, which provides an efficient method to synthesize of 4H-benzo­[d]­[1,3]­oxazin-4-ones and 4-benzylidene-2-aryloxazol-5­(4H)-ones. The strategy of copper-catalyzed reduction of phosphine oxide was used and found effective for this transformation. Additionally, the one-pot catalytic aza-Wittig reaction of carboxylic acids was achieved. Furthermore, NMR experiments and Hammett plot recorded the process of catalytic aza-Wittig reaction of anhydride, which provides direct proof that the copper-catalyzed reduction of waste phosphine oxide is the key step in this transformation.