Efficient and Selective Telomerization of 1,3-Butadiene with Diols Catalyzed by Palladium-Carbene Complexes

The selective telomerization of 1,3-butadiene with seven different linear and cyclic diols proceeds in the presence of in situ generated palladium carbene catalysts. By applying optimized reaction conditions, including very low metal loadings (2-10 ppm), excellent catalyst turnover numbers (>250000) and good chemoselectivities are observed with respect to the mono-octadienyl ether derivatives. This protocol allows the efficient preparation of unsaturated alcohols, which are useful for various applications.