The regiochemistry of formylation of several activated naphthalenes an
d benzenes with pyrophosphoryl chloride and N, N-disubstituted formami
des is governed by steric demands of the formylating species and the s
ubstrate, but electronic factors may dominate in some cases. Increasin
g the size of the formamide in the formylating reagent is beneficial f
or controlling regioselectivity.