One-pot synthesis of 2-arylbenzoxazole derivatives via Cu(I) catalyzed C-N/C-O coupling of N-(2-chloro-phenyl)-2-halo-benzamides and primary amines

N-(2-Chloro-phenyl)-2-halo-benzamides (halo=I/Br/Cl) as substrates were used for the one-pot synthesis of 2-arylbenzoxazole derivatives via copper-catalyzed intermolecular C-N/intramolecular C-O couplings with primary amines. This aryl amination offers clean reaction conditions and easy work-up in good yields by using CuI as catalyst, readily available 8-hydroxyquinoline as ligand, K3PO4 as base, DMF as solvent.