Abstract: | The 1-acyl-3-piperidones ( 5 and 8 ) have been synthesised from N-benzylpiperidine-3,5-dione ( 1 ) via a reaction sequence, which is shown to be of general utility for the preparation of 1-acyl-3-piperidones. The total yields of 5 and 8 obtained from 1 are 35% and 31% respectively. |