Water opportunities: catalyst and solvent in Mukaiyama aldol addition of Rawal's diene to carbonyl derivatives

Addition reactions between Rawal's diene and different carbonyl compounds are rapidly and efficiently promoted by water. No catalyst or any other additive, water as an eco-friendly medium, clean reaction conditions, a simple work-up, and short reaction times are the salient features in this procedure. The protocol is general, proceeding well with moderate to good yields for various aldehydes and activated ketones. Based on the experimental 1H NMR results, a Mukaiyama aldol mechanism was proposed as the reaction pathway, affording open chain products.