To a solution of 2-(4-chlorophenyl)-1-(phenylsulfonyl)-1H-imidazole (10f) (6.0 mmol) in anhydrous THF (30 mL) at −78° C. was added 1.7 M tert-butyllithium in pentane (5.3 mL, 9.0 mmol) and stirred for 10 min. 3,4,5-Trimethoxybenzoyl chloride (7.2 mmol) was added at −78° C. and stirred for overnight. The reaction mixture was diluted with 100 mL of saturated NaHCO3 solution (aqueous) and extracted by ethyl acetate (200 mL). The organic layer was dried over magnesium sulfate and concentrated. The residue was purified by flash column chromatography (hexane:ethyl acetate 4:1) to give a white solid. Yield: 36.8%; 1H NMR (500 MHz, CDCl3) δ 8.05 (d, J=7.5 Hz, 2H), 7.77 (t, J=7.5 Hz, 1H), 7.62 (t, J=8.0 Hz, 2H), 7.48 (s, 1H), 7.44 (d, J=9.0 Hz, 2H), 7.39 (d, J=8.5 Hz, 2H), 7.37 (s, 2H). MS (ESI): calculated for C25H21ClN2O6S, 512.1. found 513.1 [M+H]+.
