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Diaryl ketones are of much importance in organic synthesis as versatile intermediates and in industry for their useful properties. A mild and efficient palladium-catalyzed traditional ligand-free decarboxylative coupling of aryl α-keto carboxylic acid with aryl diazonium fluoroborate has been developed. A series of unsymmetrical diaryl ketones has been synthesized in moderate to good yields using this procedure. A radical pathway involving the acyl radical has been suggested.

A new approach for the synthesis of aryl cyanides through CC cleavage of styrenyl gem-dibromide via an in situ cyanation process by sodium azide in the presence of CuO nanoparticles and simultaneous intermolecular cyanation of an iodoarene by capturing a released CN unit has been achieved. Several diversely substituted aryl/heteroaryl cyanides including a precursor to etravirine, a drug for the treatment of HIV, have been obtained by this procedure. This protocol is unique with regard to cyanation without a cyanide reagent and provides access to two different nitriles in one reaction involving full utilization of CN units.

Chalcogenophenes are of much importance in organic synthesis as well as in pharmaceutical industry. Thus synthesis of these molecules has received considerable interest. Although a number of methods are available many of them suffer from one or more of these drawbacks - harsh conditions, use of costly metals, general applicability, tedious purification process and low yield. To avoid these drawbacks a transition metal free iodine catalyzed reaction of aryl susbstituted 1,3-dienyl bromides with KSeCN/K2S leading to the corresponding selenophenes and thiophenes has been developed. Iodine is relatively benign, less expensive and readily available. A series of diversely substituted selenophenes and thiophenes have been obtained by this procedure in high yields. Using this procedure 2-(4-chlorophenyl)thiophene, a key intermediate for the synthesis of a melanin concentrating hormone receptor ligand involved in the treatment of eating disorders, weight gain, obesity, depression and anxiety has been synthesized. Although the reaction is one-pot essentially it proceeds in two steps involving a selenocyanate intermediate leading to selenophene. A possible mechanism for selenophene formation has been suggested. Similar mechanism is also suggested for thiophene formation via the intermediacy of potassium trans-1,3-dienyl thiolate. The simple operation, use of inexpensive reagent and a metal free process make this procedure more attractive for an easy access to substituted selenophenes and thiophenes.

A simple procedure for the synthesis of organo-chalcogenides has been developed by the reaction of aryl/heteroaryl amines with di-aryl/heteroaryl dichalcogenides in the presence of t BuONO and Fe(0) nanoparticles. The reaction proceeds via in situ diazotization followed by chalcogenation. A series of functionalized diaryl/aryl heteroaryl/diheteroaryl/aryl-alkyl selenides, sulfides and tellurides have been obtained by this procedure. Significantly, using this procedure 2,4-dinitroaniline is converted to (2,4-dinitrophenyl)(phenyl)selane which is known as thioredoxin reductase (TR) and glutathione reductase (GR) inhibitor. The reaction goes by a radical pathway and a plausible mechanism has been suggested.

A highly chemoselective reduction of aryl, heteroaryl, acyl and sulfonyl azides to the corresponding amines has been achieved by Fe(0) nanoparticles in water at room temperature in the absence of external hydride source. Several readily reducible functionalities including alkene, alkyne, S-S linkage, OTBDMS remain unaffected during reduction.

Traditionally, a metal-catalyzed cross-coupling reaction is governed by displacement of leaving groups such as halogens, tosylates, etc. by different nucleophiles leading to the formation of carbon-carbon and carbon-heteroatom bonds. Besides displacement of traditional leaving groups in coupling reactions decyanative cross-coupling has also received current attention. The objective of this work is to develop a decyanative cross-coupling through metal-assisted nucleophilic displacement, which is less explored so far. Thus, a decyanative cross-coupling of aryl selenocyanate with aryl-/alkylacetylenes, boronic acids and silanes has been accomplished by a copper-assisted nucleophilic displacement reaction for an easy access to a series of diaryl, aryl alkyl, aryl vinyl and aryl alkynyl selenides. The best yield of product was obtained using 5 mol% of Cu(OAc)2, Ag2CO3 (20 mol%) and Cs2CO3 (1 equiv.) at 100 °C for 8 h in N-methylpyrrolidinone (NMP). The advantages of simple operation, high yields and general applicability make this procedure more attractive. A mechanistic pathway has been proposed. Silver plays a key role in the decyanation process. A plausible mechanistic pathway of this decyanative carbon-selenium cross-coupling has been proposed based on UV, EPR, HR-MS and IR analytical data along with results obtained from control experiments.

A convenient and efficient metal free borylation of aromatic amines has been achieved using tertiary butyl nitrite and B2Pin2 (bis(pinacolato)diborane) under irradiation with blue LED light at room temperature. This protocol has been successfully extended to subsequent Suzuki coupling in the same pot. Thus a series of functionalized aryl boronates and biaryls are obtained in high yields in a shorter reaction period starting from relatively cheap aryl amines in one-pot avoiding isolation of potentially unstable and hazardous intermediates.

The benzoxazine scaffolds are of much interest as they are found in a large array of natural products and pharmaceutical drugs with diverse activities. We have developed a palladium-catalyzed decarboxylative selective mono- and bis-acylation of 4H-benzo[d][1,3]oxazin-4-one derivatives with α-oxo carboxylic acids via preferential cyclic imine-N-directed CH activation. 2-Aryl-4H-benzo[d][1,3]oxazin-4-one was acylated with a variety of substituted phenylglyoxylic acids to produce the corresponding products. It was observed that electron-donating groups (CH3, OCH3) at any position of the aromatic ring of phenylglyoxylic acid provided good to excellent yields, whereas phenylglyoxylic acids containing electron-withdrawing groups (COCH3, CN, NO2) gave the products in moderate yields. Interestingly when the reaction was performed with silver triflate (AgOTf) in place of silver nitrate (AgNO3) in the presence of 4 equivalents of glyoxylic acid, the bis-acylated product was obtained together with a small amount of mono-acylated product. This is the first report of acylation of 2-aryl-4H-benzo[d][1,3]oxazin-4-ones via CH activation. The notable features of this reaction are acylation with more challenging heteroarene-oxo carboxylic acids and alkyl oxo carboxylic acids. This new protocol provides an easy and efficient access to a variety of o-acyl-4H-benzo[d][1,3]oxazin-4-one derivatives which are of pharmaceutical importance.

An efficient protocol for the cross coupling of styrenyl/aryl halides and H-phosphinate has been developed using a unique Co/Cu catalytic system in the absence of any additional ligand for the first time. A library of diversely functionalised styrenyl/aryl phosphonates has been synthesized using this procedure. The advantages offered using this procedure are operational simplicity, the use of inexpensive and relatively benign metals as a catalyst, wide tolerance to functionality including electron withdrawing and releasing substituents, excellent stereoselectivity and high yields. The mechanism has also been established. The unique feature of this Co/Cu system is that, it primarily involves Co in the catalytic cycle and Cu in the transmetalation process.

A new procedure for the oxidation of sulfides to sulfones utilizing heterogeneous ruthenium reagent has been developed. A small amount of ruthenium trichloride (RuCl 3 ) supported on alumina and excess sodium metaperiodate (NaIO 4 ) was used to produce the ruthenium oxidizing catalyst in the reaction mixture. Sodium metaperiodate oxidized the pre-catalyst RuCl 3 to RuO 4 and also maintained a constant supply of RuO 4 by oxidizing lower valent ruthenium ions during the course of the reaction. An environmentally friendly solvent mixture of dimethyl carbonate (DMC) and water was employed. A wide variety of aromatic sulfides were oxidized to sulfones in good to excellent yields by utilizing this procedure.

An efficient C(sp2)N cross-coupling of styrenyl and vinyl halides with cyclic and bridged amides catalyzed by nickel acetonylacetonate [Ni(acac)2] and copper(I) iodide (CuI) in the absence of any ligand has been developed. The reaction conditions are optimized to give the maximum yield of products using cesium carbonate (Cs2CO3) (2.0 equiv.) in N-methyl-2-pyrrolidinone (NMP) at 110 °C under argon in the presence of Ni(acac)2/CuI (10 mol% each). A series of alkenyl derivatives of Vince lactams (bridged amides) and cyclic amides are obtained by this procedure. Halogen-containing styrenyl bromides also underwent coupling with amides to provide the products. The coupling is highly chemoselective as during the reactions the halogens (Br, Cl, F) on the aromatic ring remained intact and these can be used for further functionalization to make these enamides more useful. Although the (E)-styrenyl halides produced the corresponding (E)-styrenyl enamides, reactions with (Z)-styrenyl halides produced 1,3-di-ynes instead of (Z)-styrenyl enamides. This may be explained by the possibility of E2 type elimination of (Z)-styrenyl halides in the presence of a strong base like cesium carbonate followed by homocoupling. This catalyst system works efficiently for the N-arylation too along with N-styrenylation and vinylation. The bridged as well as cyclic amides successfully coupled with substituted aryl halides to provide the corresponding products. In general, the reactions are clean and high yielding. The operations are very simple and the products are obtained pure by standard column chromatography. The reaction is compatible with variety of amides and alkenyl bromides. The roles of nickel acetonylacetonate and copper(I) iodide in this reaction have been established and a possible reaction pathway has been outlined. The significant feature of this protocol is the alkenylation of Vince lactams via C(sp2)N cross-coupling, which has not been reported so far and these products may have much potential in the pharmaceutical industry.

A convenient and general protocol for oxidative arylation of vinyl arenes by aryl radicals generated in situ from arene diazonium fluoroborates promoted by ascorbic acid in air at room temperature has been developed in the absence of any additive and visible light irradiation. A series of diversely substituted 2-aryl acetophenones have been obtained in good yields by this procedure.

Cobalt(II)-catalyzed C(sp(2) )O cross-coupling between aryl/heteroaryl alcohols and vinyl/aryl halides in the presence of Cu(I) has been achieved under ligand-free conditions. In this reaction, copper plays a significant role in transmetalation rather than being directly involved in the CO coupling. This unique Co/Cu-dual catalyst system provides an easy access to a library of aryl-vinyl, heteroaryl-styryl, aryl-aryl, and heteroaryl-heteroaryl ethers in the absence of any ligand or additive.

The use of a new ZnO-supported palladium(0) nanoparticle catalyst for the cyanation of aryl halides using a relatively benign cyanide source, K4[Fe(CN)6], is described. This catalyst has been applied for the efficient cyanation of a variety of functionalized aryl bromides and activated aryl chlorides. This process circumvents the need for an additive and a ligand for the reaction and offers the advantages of high product yields, low catalyst loading (0.2 mol % Pd), and recyclability of the catalyst.

A novel strategy for the direct conversion of aryl- and heteroarylamines to selenides has been developed via diazotization of amines with tert-butyl nitrite in neutral medium followed by reaction with diaryl/diheteroaryl/dialkyl diselenides in one pot under photocatalysis at room temperature in the absence of any metal. This reaction is also applied for the synthesis of tellurides. The selenylation of heteroarylamine by this protocol is of much significance because of the difficulty in diazotization of these molecules by a standard diazotization method in acid medium.

The oxidation of organo-sulfides to sulfones has been accomplished using an easily accessible bifunctional ionic liquid, [pmim]IO4 in the absence of any other oxidants, metal and organic solvent at ambient temperature. A variety of sulfides including dialkyl, aryl–alkyl, diaryl, and aryl–hetero aryl have been oxidized to the corresponding functionalized sulfones in high yields by this procedure.

An efficient coupling of styrenyl, heteroaryl and sterically hindered aryl halides with aryl- and heteroarylthiols catalyzed by the bimetallic Cu and Fe nanomaterial, CuFe2O4, in water in the presence of tetrabutylammonium bromide and potassium phosphate (K3PO4) has been achieved without using any ligand. A series of unsymmetrical functionalized (E)- and (Z)-styrenyl aryl, heteroaryl heteroaryl and sterically hindered aryl aryl sulfides has been obtained by this procedure. The compounds are obtained in high yields and excellent stereoselectivity has been observed for styrenyl sulfides. The catalyst can be easily separated by an external magnet and recycled for ten times without any appreciable loss of activity. This procedure provides an easy access to useful and challenging biologically active organosulfides which are difficult to achieve by other methods.

An attempted Sonogashira reaction of 2-nitroiodobenzene and phenyl acetylene catalyzed by Pd(PPh 3 ) 4 /Cu in water in the presence of pyrrolidine proceeds with simultaneous regioselective hydration of the Sonogashira alkyne leading to the corresponding aryl ketone. A series of functionalized 2-(2-nitrophenyl)-1-aryl ethanones are obtained in high yields by this procedure.

A one-pot procedure for the synthesis of 1,2,3-triazole derivatives by a three-component coupling of alkyl (benzyl) halides or aryl boronic acids, sodium azide and terminal alkynes over copper(II) sulfate supported on alumina (Cu/Al2O3) under ball-milling in the absence of any solvent and additive has been developed. The product was isolated by simple washing of the crude reaction residue with ethanol followed by evaporation of the solvent. No chromatographic purification is required. The catalyst is recycled for subsequent reactions. The azides are produced in situ and thus this procedure avoids the handling of hazardous azides. This protocol offers broad scope for access to a variety of diversely substituted 1,2,3-triazoles. The use of no hazardous organic solvent, the use of ball-milling, and cost efficiency, recyclability of the catalyst up to eight runs without appreciable loss of activity and high yields of products make this procedure greener.

A convenient and efficient metal free borylation of aromatic amines has been achieved using tertiary butyl nitrite and B2Pin2 (bis(pinacolato)diborane) under irradiation with blue LED light at room temperature. This protocol has been successfully extended to subsequent Suzuki coupling in the same pot. Thus a series of functionalized aryl boronates and biaryls are obtained in high yields in a shorter reaction period starting from relatively cheap aryl amines in one-pot avoiding isolation of potentially unstable and hazardous intermediates.

A new procedure for the oxidation of sulfides to sulfones utilizing heterogeneous ruthenium reagent has been developed. A small amount of ruthenium trichloride (RuCl 3 ) supported on alumina and excess sodium metaperiodate (NaIO 4 ) was used to produce the ruthenium oxidizing catalyst in the reaction mixture. Sodium metaperiodate oxidized the pre-catalyst RuCl 3 to RuO 4 and also maintained a constant supply of RuO 4 by oxidizing lower valent ruthenium ions during the course of the reaction. An environmentally friendly solvent mixture of dimethyl carbonate (DMC) and water was employed. A wide variety of aromatic sulfides were oxidized to sulfones in good to excellent yields by utilizing this procedure.

An efficient C(sp2)N cross-coupling of styrenyl and vinyl halides with cyclic and bridged amides catalyzed by nickel acetonylacetonate [Ni(acac)2] and copper(I) iodide (CuI) in the absence of any ligand has been developed. The reaction conditions are optimized to give the maximum yield of products using cesium carbonate (Cs2CO3) (2.0 equiv.) in N-methyl-2-pyrrolidinone (NMP) at 110 °C under argon in the presence of Ni(acac)2/CuI (10 mol% each). A series of alkenyl derivatives of Vince lactams (bridged amides) and cyclic amides are obtained by this procedure. Halogen-containing styrenyl bromides also underwent coupling with amides to provide the products. The coupling is highly chemoselective as during the reactions the halogens (Br, Cl, F) on the aromatic ring remained intact and these can be used for further functionalization to make these enamides more useful. Although the (E)-styrenyl halides produced the corresponding (E)-styrenyl enamides, reactions with (Z)-styrenyl halides produced 1,3-di-ynes instead of (Z)-styrenyl enamides. This may be explained by the possibility of E2 type elimination of (Z)-styrenyl halides in the presence of a strong base like cesium carbonate followed by homocoupling. This catalyst system works efficiently for the N-arylation too along with N-styrenylation and vinylation. The bridged as well as cyclic amides successfully coupled with substituted aryl halides to provide the corresponding products. In general, the reactions are clean and high yielding. The operations are very simple and the products are obtained pure by standard column chromatography. The reaction is compatible with variety of amides and alkenyl bromides. The roles of nickel acetonylacetonate and copper(I) iodide in this reaction have been established and a possible reaction pathway has been outlined. The significant feature of this protocol is the alkenylation of Vince lactams via C(sp2)N cross-coupling, which has not been reported so far and these products may have much potential in the pharmaceutical industry.

Palladium nanoparticles, generated in situ efficiently catalyzes direct 2-C-H arylation of benzothiazole without requirement of any ligand. A wide range of substituted aryl and heteroaryl iodides participate in this reaction producing a series of 2-aryl/heteroaryl-benzothiazoles in high yields.

Palladium(0) nanoparticles efficiently catalyze aliphatic aldehyde C–H functionalization by aryl halides to produce alkyl–aryl ketones in good yields. A wide range of substituted aryl and hetero-aryl bromides/iodides and open-chain aldehydes of varied chain length participated in this reaction.

Pd(0) nanoparticles have been demonstrated to be very efficient catalysts for C–C bond-forming reactions. These include coupling of vicinal-diiodoalkenes and acrylic esters and nitriles leading to the stereoselective synthesis of 2-alkene-4-yn-esters and nitriles, allylation of active methylene compounds by allyl acetate, and Hiyama cross-coupling of aryliodides with arylsilanes. Cu(0) nanoparticles catalyze aryl-sulfur bond formation, accomplishing the synthesis of functionalized aryl sulfides and aryl- and vinyl dithiocarbamates. Cu nanoparticles have also been used for the chemoselective reduction of aromatic nitro compounds.

Alumina-supported copper sulfate efficiently catalyzes the S-arylation of aromatic, heteroaromatic and aliphatic thiols with aryl as well as heteroaryl halides under aerobic, ligand-free conditions. This protocol provides an easy access to a variety of thioethers as well as unsymmetrical bis-thioethers by base-controlled differential coupling of thiols with iodo- and bromo-substituents in an aromatic halide. The catalyst is inexpensive, non-air sensitive, environmentally friendly and recyclable.

A new protocol for the coupling of aryl iodides with thiophenols and alkanethiols catalyzed by copper nanoparticles under ligand-free condition has been developed. A variety of functionalized aryl sulfides are prepared in excellent yields under microwave irradiation for 5-7 min. A plausible radical mechanism has been suggested.

A convenient and general protocol for oxidative arylation of vinyl arenes by aryl radicals generated in situ from arene diazonium fluoroborates promoted by ascorbic acid in air at room temperature has been developed in the absence of any additive and visible light irradiation. A series of diversely substituted 2-aryl acetophenones have been obtained in good yields by this procedure.

Reactions of aryl/heteroaryl alcohols with vinyl/arylhalides afford a library of aryl-vinyl, heteroaryl-styryl, aryl-aryl, and heteroaryl-heteroaryl ethers in the presence of copper, under ligand-free and additive-free conditions.

The oxidation of organo-sulfides to sulfones has been accomplished using an easily accessible bifunctional ionic liquid, [pmim]IO4 in the absence of any other oxidants, metal and organic solvent at ambient temperature. A variety of sulfides including dialkyl, aryl–alkyl, diaryl, and aryl–hetero aryl have been oxidized to the corresponding functionalized sulfones in high yields by this procedure.

The use of a new ZnO-supported palladium(0) nanoparticle catalyst for the cyanation of aryl halides using a relatively benign cyanide source, K4[Fe(CN)6], is described. This catalyst has been applied for the efficient cyanation of a variety of functionalized aryl bromides and activated aryl chlorides. This process circumvents the need for an additive and a ligand for the reaction and offers the advantages of high product yields, low catalyst loading (0.2 mol % Pd), and recyclability of the catalyst.

Arylation of 2,6-dichlorobenzaldehyde by aryl boronic acids via site-selective Suzuki coupling catalyzed by PdCl 2 supported on 4 A molecular sieves produces 2-aryl-6-chlorobenzaldehyde which on subsequent coupling with a different aryl boronic acid in the presence of Pd(OAc) 2 –NHC ligand leads to non-symmetric diaryl benzaldehyde in good overall yield.

A general method for the conversion of a variety of anilines to selenides is achieved using an in situ formation of diazonium salts and photocatalytic reaction with diselenides using eosin Y as catalyst.

An efficient protocol for the synthesis of selenophenes and selanyl selenophenes has been achieved by a simple one-pot reaction of 1,3-dienyl bromides and 1,3-dienyl-gem-dibromides respectively with KSeCN catalyzed by CuO nanoparticles. Several aryl, alkenyl, heteroaryl, and alkyl substituted selenophenes were obtained with a broad array of functional group tolerance. This is found to be a general methodology for chalcogenophenes being effective for the synthesis of thiophenes too.

This review highlights the applications of indium metal and indium(III) halides in organic synthesis with particular reference to regio-, stereo-, and chemoselectivity. Indium-mediated reactions include the regioselective allylation of alkynes, the stereoselective debromination of vic-aryl-substituted dibromides, the homocoupling of alkyl/aryl halides, and the reduction of α-halocarbonyl compounds. Indium trichloride has been used as a Lewis acid catalyst in epoxide rearrangements, in the synthesis of α-amino phosphonates, and in the construction of the quinoline system. Indium triiodide has proven to be a very efficient catalyst for transesterification processes.

An efficient Hiyama cross-coupling of a wide variety of substituted aryl bromides and iodides with arylsilanes has been achieved at 100 °C in water through a simple one-pot operation using in situ generated palladium nanoparticles. This reaction is very fast (5 min) and has been performed in air under fluoride-free conditions, giving excellent chemoselectivity and high yields.

Moreover, the catalyst can be reused up to seven times without significant loss in activity.

A simple one-pot reaction of 2-nitroiodobenzenes with aryl acetylenes is developed to synthesize 2-(2-nitrophenyl)-1-aryl ethanones as potential precursors of indoles.

Alumina-supported Cu(II) efficiently catalyzes selenylation of aryl iodides and aryl bromides by diaryl, dialkyl, and diheteroaryl diselenides in water and PEG-600, respectively, leading to a general route toward synthesis of unsymmetrical diaryl, aryl-alkyl, aryl-heteroaryl, and diheteroaryl selenides. A sequential reaction of bromoiodobenzene with one diaryl/diheteroaryl/dialkyl diselenide in water and another diaryl/diheteroaryl/dialkyl diselenide in PEG-600 in the second step produces unsymmetrical diaryl, diheteroaryl, or aryl-alkyl bis-selanyl benzene. A library of functionalized organo mono- and bis-selenides, including a potent biologically active molecule and a couple of analogues of bioactive selenides, were obtained in high yields by this protocol. The reactions are chemoselective and high yielding. The Cu-Al2O3 catalyst is recycled for seven runs without any appreciable loss of activity.

The simplicity in operation, general applicability to all three chalcogenides (III), (V) and (VII), use of recycable dimethyl carbonate and employment of stable and readily available dichalcogenides in place of thiols and analogues makes the procedure environmentally friendly and more cost-effective.

The title synthesis, endowed with several green parameters, e.g. H2O as solvent use of stable and user-friendly diazonium tetrafluoroborate in place of diazonium chloride, is an attractive alternative for the synthesis of aryl dithiocarbamates.

A convenient and efficient procedure has been developed for the vinylation of aryl-, styrenyl-, cinnamyl- and dienyl-halides by a Pd(0) nanoparticle-catalyzed Hiyama cross-coupling to provide the corresponding dienes and trienes in high yields. The reaction does not require any ligand or co-catalyst, and is carried out using PdCl2 and tetrabutyl ammonium fluoride (TBAF) in THF. Pd nanoparticles are generated in situ and are the active catalytic species in this reaction. A wide range of functionalized styrenes, trans aryl 1,3-, 1,4- and 1,5- dienes, 1,2-, 1-3 and 1,4-bis(1,3-dienes), and 1,3,5-trienes can be obtained by this procedure.

Aryl azides undergo clean reduction by copper nanoparticles and ammonium formate in water. The surface hydrogen on copper nanoparticles is considered to be the active reducing species. A variety of functionalized aryl azides and aryl sulfonyl azides are reduced by this procedure to the corresponding amines with excellent chemoselectivity in high yields.

The carbon-carbon and carbon-heteroatom bond formations constitute the backbone of organic synthesis and have been widely used in the synthesis of natural products and useful compounds. Because of growing environmental concern, more attention has been focussed on the development of greener methods. Copper is environment-friendly and comparatively inexpensive. Although the use of copper salts in catalysis has been known since the last century, this area of research has been less explored compared to other metals, such as palladium, magnesium, and zinc. This review highlights the general features of nanoparticles as catalysts with particular reference to copper and the recent developments in the copper(0) nanoparticle-catalyzed C(aryl)-C(aryl/alkynyl), C(aryl)-N, C(aryl)-O, C(aryl)-S, and C(aryl)-Se bond formations and related reactions. The mechanisms of the reactions have been outlined and discussed with respect to the active catalytic species and possible intermediates. The scope, limitations, and green aspects of the reactions have also been highlighted. The convenient methods of preparation of copper nanoparticles and their characterization are described.

Palladium(0) nanoparticles efficiently catalyze aliphatic aldehyde C–H functionalization by aryl halides to produce alkyl–aryl ketones in good yields. A wide range of substituted aryl and hetero-aryl bromides/iodides and open-chain aldehydes of varied chain length participated in this reaction.