Metal-Free Synthesis of Benzimidazolinones via Oxidative Cyclization Under Hypervalent Iodine Catalysis

Benzimidazolinones exhibit unique biological activities and serve as building blocks in synthesizing pharmaceutical compounds. Although multiple synthetic approaches involving intermolecular cyclization reactions have been reported, intramolecular cyclization reactions are scarce, and more rational synthetic methods are required. Hypervalent iodine-catalyzed oxidative C–N coupling is a potentially effective approach for synthesizing benzimidazolinones under metal-free conditions. In this study, we present a method utilizing hypervalent iodine catalysis for the oxidative cyclization of N’-aryl urea compounds, resulting in the first metal-free synthesis of various benzimidazolinones.