Patent ID: 8143453

Claim:
A process for preparing a compound according to Formula I, or a salt thereof: wherein: Ar 1 and Ar 2 are independently selected from substituted and unsubstituted aryl and substituted and unsubstituted heteroaryl; R is —H or —(C 1 -C 8 )hydrocarbyl; and * indicates that, when R is other than —H, the configuration of the substituents on the carbon atom is (R)—, (S)— or any mixture of (R)— and (S)—; said process comprising the steps of: (a) reacting a compound according to Formula II, or a salt thereof: wherein, Ar 1 , Ar 2 , R and * are as defined above, under conditions sufficient to reduce the ketone moiety of the Formula II compound to a secondary alcohol, to form a compound according to Formula III, or a salt thereof: wherein Ar 1 , Ar 2 , * and R are as defined for compounds according to Formula I, and ‡ indicates that the configuration of the substituents on the designated carbon atom is (R)—, (S)— or any mixture of (R)— and (S)—; (b) reacting said compound according to Formula III prepared in step (a), or a salt thereof, under conditions sufficient to dehydrate the secondary alcohol moiety of the Formula III compound to form a compound according to Formula I, or a salt thereof; and (c) isolating said compound according to Formula I formed in step (b), or a salt thereof, from the reaction mixture of step (b).