Lewis Acid‐Catalyzed Tandem Cyclizations of 1,2‐Diarylalkenols

The synthesis of medium‐sized carbocycles from linear chains is challenging in organic chemistry. Among the effective methods for the synthesis of polysubstituted carbocycles with contiguous stereogenic centers, the dehydrative cyclization of alcohols with alkenes is an attractive protocol as it uses readily available substrates, without requiring unnecessary prefunctionalization, and generates water as the sole byproduct. Herein, a dehydrative cyclization reaction is explored, as well as two tandem reactions initiated by this cyclization. These reactions are allowed by metal‐based or organic Lewis acids as catalysts containing only main group elements, which proved compatible with the formation of water during the reaction. This approach allowed the synthesis of 26 new carbocycles with yields up to 97% and high diastereoselectivity.