Synergistic Brønsted/Lewis acid catalyzed aromatic alkylation with unactivated tertiary alcohols or di-tert-butylperoxide to synthesize quaternary carbon centers

Dual Brønsted/Lewis acid catalysis involving environmentally benign, readily accessible protic acid and iron promotes site-selective tert-butylation of electron-rich arenes using di-tert-butylperoxide. This transformation inspired the development of a synergistic Brønsted/Lewis acid catalyzed aromatic alkylation that fills a gap in the Friedel–Crafts reaction literature by employing unactivated tertiary alcohols as alkylating agents, leading to new quaternary carbon centers. Corroborated by DFT calculations, the Lewis acid serves a role in enhancing the acidity of the Brønsted acid. The use of non-allylic, non-benzylic, and non-propargylic tertiary alcohols represents an underexplored area in Friedel–Crafts reactivity.