Synthesis of novel 1-aryl-substituted 8-methoxynaphthalenes and their tendency for atropisomerization

Novel 1-aryl-substituted 8-methoxynaphthalenes were conveniently prepared by using Suzuki–Miyaura cross-coupling as a key reaction. Chemical transformations of the coupled products gave a variety of biaryls bearing various functional groups. The optical behavior of the separated enantiomers of these derivatives was also investigated by HPLC analysis. The optical resolution and determination of absolute configuration of novel binaphtyl derivative were also described. These new compounds may have some potential as mono- or bidentate ligands for metal-catalyzed chemical transformations including asymmetric induction.