Fluoro- and Chloroferrocene: From 2- to 3-Substituted Derivatives

The ferrocene halogen “dance” has been deemed hardly controllable. Here, we describe the first efficient examples of this reaction. Conversion of 1-fluoro-2-iodo (or 1-chloro-2-iodo) to 1-fluoro-3-iodo (or 1-chloro-3-iodo) ferrocenes was ensured by suitably protecting the free 5-position.