Chromium(III)-Catalyzed Addition of Water and Alcohol to α,β-Unsaturated Ketones for the Synthesis of β-Hydroxyl and β-Alkoxyl Ketones in Aqueous Media

An efficient chromium(III) chloride-catalyzed Michael-type reaction of water or alcohol with α,β-unsaturated ketones is developed. A variety of α,β-unsaturated ketones effectively reacted with either water or alcohols to give the corresponding β-hydroxyl ketones or β-alkoxyl ketones in modest to high yields with excellent compatibility to various functional groups. The approach was further utilized for the preparation of synthetically useful compounds containing tetrahydrofuran skeleton.