Ytterbium triflate catalyzed synthesis of β-keto enol ethers

β-Keto enol ethers have been synthesized in very good yield in solvent-free conditions from differently substituted alcohols and β-diketones in the presence of Yb(OTf)3 as catalyst. The method is applicable to both cyclic and acyclic β-diketones with only slight differences in the experimental procedure.