Synthesis and structures of new 1,3,6,2-dioxazaborocanes containing substituents in the ocane fragment

New 1,3,6,2-dioxazaborocanes R¹N(CHR³CR⁴R²O)(CHR⁶CHR⁵O)BX (1–11, X = Ph, 4-MeC₆H₄, Me; R¹ = Me, PhCH₂; R², R³, R⁴, R⁵, R⁶ = H, Ph) were synthesized by the reactions of aryl- or methylboronic acids with dialkanolamines. The treatment of (Me₂NCH₂CH₂O)₃B (15) with MeN(CH₂CH₂OH)(CH₂CPh₂OH) afforded 2-2-(dime-thylamino)ethoxy]-1,3,6,2-dioxazaborocane (12). 2-Fluoro-1,3,6,2-dioxazaborocanes R¹N(CHR³CHR²O)(CH₂CH₂O)BF (13: R¹ = PhCH₂, R² = R³ = H; 14: R¹ = Me, R² = R³ = Ph, threo) were synthesized by the reaction of bis(trimethylsilyl) ethers of the corresponding dialkanolamines with BF₃·Et₂O. The new borocanes can be used for the synthesis of the corre-sponding germanium derivatives PhCH₂N(CH₂CH₂O)₂GeX₂ (16, X = OEt; 17, X = Cl), as exemplified by the reaction of compound 6. The structures of erythro-MeN(CH₂CH₂O)(CHPhCHPhO)BPh (3), threo-MeN(CH₂CH₂O)(CHPhCHPhO)BPh (4), erythro-MeN(CH₂CH₂O)(CHPhCHPhO)B(4-MeC₆H₄) (8), and PhCH₂N(CH₂CH₂O)₂BF (13) were established by X-ray diffraction. The coordination polyhedra of the boron atoms in these complexes can be described as distorted tetrahedra. The boron-nitrogen distances (1.705(7)–1.723(3) Å) provide unambiguous evidence for the presence of the B←N transannular interaction in these compounds. The structures of the resulting borocanes containing phenyl substituents at the carbon atoms of the ocane skeleton were studied by NMR spectroscopy and quantum chemical density functional theory calculations.