In this study, we
report a facile synthesis of 2-chloro-1,3-bis(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)imidazolium
salts in aqueous media under ambient conditions using hypochlorite
as a chlorinating agent. In addition, an air-stable and moisture-insensitive
deoxyfluorination reagent based on poly[hydrogen fluoride] salt is
presented, which is capable of converting electron-deficient phenols
or aryl silyl ethers into the corresponding aryl fluorides in the
presence of DBU as a base, with good to excellent yields and high
tolerance to functional groups.