Regio- and stereoselective Cu-catalyzed addition of the above hypervalent iodine reagent to alkynes and alkenes was achieved. In the presence of Cul, the reaction is suitable to perform trifluoromethyl-benzoyloxylation and trifluoromethyl-halogenation of alkenes and alkynes. Electron-donating substituents accelerate the process, and alkenes react faster than alkynes emphasizing the electrophilic character of the addition reaction.

Styrenes with an electron-deficient double bond undergo cyanotrifluoromethylation with a trifluoromethylated hypervalent iodine reagent in the presence of CuCN. The reaction proceeds under mild conditions in the presence of bulky phosphines or B(2)pin(2) additives. The process is highly regioselective and involves the consecutive formation of two C-C bonds in a single addition reaction. In the presence of a p-methoxy substituent in the styrene, oxytrifluoromethylation occurs instead of the cyanotrifluoromethylation.

Quinones undergo copper-mediated C-H trifluoromethylation reactions using a hypervalent iodine reagent. The reactions have a broad synthetic scope involving naphtho, alkyl, chloro and methoxy quinones.

The copper-catalyzed oxytrifluoromethylation of phenylacetylenes and C-H trifluoromethylation of quinones were studied. It was found that both reactions are accelerated by B(2)pin(2) and PCy3 additives. The two reactions have different substituent effects. The oxytrifluoromethylation is faster in the presence of electron-donating groups, while the C-H trifluoromethylation is faster with electron-withdrawing substituents. The Hammett plot for oxytrifluoromethylation gave a rho value of 0.76 indicating electron demand in the rate determining step of the reaction. According to the absolute value of rho the reaction probably does not proceed through a rate determining formation of a carbocation intermediate. The kinetic isotope effect measurements indicate that in C-H trifluoromethylation of quinones the cleavage of the C-H bond is not the rate determining step of the reaction.

An air-and moisture-stable fluoroiodane in the presence of AgBF4 is suitable for selective geminal difluorination of styrenes under mild reaction conditions. One of the C-F bonds is formed by transfer of electrophilic fluorine from the hypervalent iodine reagent, while the other one arises from the tetrafluoroborate counterion of silver. Deuterium-isotope-labelling experiments and rearrangement of methyl styrene substrates suggest that the reaction proceeds through a phenonium ion intermediate.

A new method is presented for 1,3-difluorination and 1,3-oxyfluorination reactions. The process is based on iodonium mediated opening of 1,1-disubstituted cyclopropanes. The reaction proceeds with high chemo- and regioselectivity under mild reaction conditions typically at room temperature in a couple of hours. The reaction probably occurs via electrophilic ring-opening of cyclopropanes.

The application of an air- and moisture-stable fluoroiodane reagent was investigated in the palladium-catalyzed iodofluorination reaction of alkenes. Both the iodo and fluoro substituents arise from the fluoroiodane reagent. In the case of certain palladium catalysts, the alkene substrates undergo allylic rearrangement prior to the iodofluorination process. The reaction is faster for electron-rich alkenes than for electron-deficient ones.