Palladium-Catalyzed Carbonylation of sec- and tert-Alcohols

A general palladium-catalyzed synthesis of linear esters directly from sec- and tert-alcohols is described. Compared to the classic Koch-Haaf reaction, which leads to branched products, this new transformation gives the corresponding linear esters in high yields and selectivity. Key for this protocol is the use of an advanced palladium catalyst system with L2 (py^t bpx) as the ligand. A variety of aliphatic and benzylic alcohols can be directly used and the catalyst efficiency for the benchmark reaction is outstanding (turnover number up to 89 000).