Safety Assessment of Benzyne Generation from a Silyl Triflate Precursor

Silyl triflate precursors to benzyne and related intermediates have emerged as valuable synthetic building blocks. However, data addressing the safety of employing these silyl triflate precursors are lacking. We report the calorimetric analysis of a typical Kobayashi procedure for forming and trapping benzyne using a silyl triflate precursor. Our findings suggest that, unlike benzenediazonium carboxylate precursors to benzyne, silyl triflates may be employed under mild conditions without severe concern for runaway reaction.