Hydrosilylation of alkynes catalyzed by ruthenium carbene complexes

Hydrosilylation of terminal alkynes with a variety of silanes catalyzed by Cl₂(PCy₃)₂RuCHPh (1) affords mainly the Z-isomer via trans addition in excellent yields. The presence of a hydroxyl group in close proximity to the triple bond was observed to exert a strong directing effect, resulting in the highly selective formation of the α-isomer. Intramolecular hydrosilylation of a homopropargylic silyl ether was demonstrated to give the cis addition product.     

Unsaturated carbene and allenylidene ruthenium complexes from alkynes

The author's studies aimed at activation of terminal alkynes by metal complexes and reactivity patterns and selective preparations of unsaturated carbene, allenylidene, and cumulenylidene derivatives of (arene)ruthenium complexes are reviewed.The review is based on the lecture given at Workshop «Modern Problems of Organometallic Chemistry» (May 1994).Translated fromIzyestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 5, pp. 827–838, May, 1995.     

Highly active phosphine-free carbene ruthenium catalyst for cross-metathesis of acrylonitrile with functionalized olefins

The carbene ruthenium complex [1,3-bis(2,6-dimethylphenyl)-4,5-dihydroimidazol-2-ylidene](C₅H₅N)₂(Cl)₂RuCHPh (8) was prepared by the reaction of [1,3-bis (2,6-dimethylphenyl)-4,5-dihydroimidazol-2-ylidene](PPh₃)(Cl)₂RuCHPh (7) with pyridine and used as a highly effective catalyst for the cross-metathesis of acrylonitrile with various functionalized olefins.     

Lewis-acid assisted cross metathesis of acrylonitrile with functionalized olefins catalyzed by phosphine-free ruthenium carbene complex

The exchange of the PPh3 ligand in the complex [1,3-bis(2,6-dimethylphenyl)4,5-dihydroimidazol-2-ylidene](PPh3)(Cl)2Ru=CHPh (7) for a pyridine ligand at ambient temperature leads to the formation of the stable phosphine-free carbene ruthenium complex [1,3-bis(2,6-dimethylphenyl)4,5-dihydroimidazol-2-ylidene](C5H5N)2(Cl)2 Ru=CHPh (8). The resulted ruthenium complex exhibits highly catalytic activity for the cross metathesis of acrylonitrile with various functionalized olefins under mild conditions, and its activity can be further improved by the addition of a Lewis acid such as Ti(OiPr)4. In the mixture products, the Z-isomer predominates.     

Homo-metathesis of vinylsilanes catalysed by ruthenium carbene complexes

Effective homo-metathesis of a series of dichloro-substituted vinylsilanes H₂C = C(H)SiCl₂R (where R = Me, OSiMe₃, C₆H₅, C₆H₄–Me-4, C₆H₄–CF₃-4) in the presence of second generation Grubbs catalyst [Cl₂(PCy₃)(IMesH₂)Ru(=CHPh)] (I) and Hoveyda–Grubbs catalyst (II) leads to selective formation of E-1,2-bis(silyl)ethenes and ethene. On the basis of the results of experiments with deuterium-labelled reagents, a metallacarbene mechanism has been suggested for these reactions.     

Thermal and photochemical reactions of Fischer carbene complexes with trialkylsilyl-substituted alkynes

Thermal reaction of Fischer carbene complexes with triisopropylsilyl (TIPS) substituted alkynes in benzene afforded TIPS-substituted vinylketenes or 2-TIPS-substituted cyclobutenones as major products while photochemical reaction of Fischer carbene complexes with trimethylsilyl (TMS) substituted alkynes in acetonitrile afforded 3-TMS-substituted cyclobutenones.     

Synthesis of arene ruthenium triazolato complexes by cycloaddition of the corresponding arene ruthenium azido complexes with activated alkynes or with fumaronitrile

The neutral arene ruthenium azido complexes [(η⁶-p-cymene)Ru(LL)(N₃)], [LL = acetylacetonato (acac) (4), benzoylacetonato (bzac) (5) diphenylbenzoyl methane (dbzm) (6)] undergo [3+2] cycloaddition reaction with a series of activated alkynes and fumaronitrile to produce the arene ruthenium triazolato complexes: [(η⁶-p-cymene)Ru(LL){N₃C₂(CO₂R)₂}] [LL = (acac), R = Me (7); LL = (bzac), R = Me (8); LL = (dbzm), R = Me (9); LL = (acac), R = Et (10); LL = (bzac), R = Et (11); LL = (dbzm), R = Et (12) and [(η⁶-p-cymene)Ru(LL)(N₃C₂HCN)]; LL = acac (13), bzac (14); dbzm (15). However, cationic azido complexes, [(η⁶-p-cymene)Ru(dppe)(N₃)]⁺ and [(η⁶-p-cymene)Ru(dppm)(N₃)]⁺ do not undergo such cycloaddition reactions. The complexes were characterized on the basis of microanalyses, FT-IR and NMR spectroscopic data. Crystal structures of representative complexes were determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction.     

Hydrosilylation of terminal alkynes with alkylidene ruthenium complexes and silanes

[reaction: see text] Ruthenium alkylidene complexes 1-3 mediate hydrosilylation of alkynes with silanes. When triethoxy- or triphenylsilanes are used as silylating agents, the reaction affords alpha-substituted vinylsilanes as major products.     

Monothiolate ruthenium alkylidene complexes with tricyclic fluorinated N-heterocyclic carbene ligands

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Synthesis of enol esters from terminal alkynes catalyzed by ruthenium complexes

Regioselective enol ester formation results from the addition of saturated and unsaturated carboxylic acids to phenylacetylene in the presence of RuCl₃, RuCl₃/2PR₃ or RuCl₂(PMe₂)(arene) catalysts.     

Latent ruthenium carbene complexes with six-membered N- and S-chelate rings

New ruthenium carbene complexes with chelating N- and S-benzylidene ligands were synthesized by the reactions of second- and third-generation Grubbs catalysts with ortho-vinylbenzyl-substituted amines or sulfides. These complexes were shown to exhibit catalytic activity in ring-opening metathesis polymerization and ring-closing metathesis.     

The first examples of a meta-benzannulation from the reaction of Fischer carbene complexes with alkynes

The intramolecular benzannulations of carbene complexes with alkynes are examined where the alkyne is tethered to the alpha-carbon of the vinyl carbene complex. These reactions are sensitive to the length of the tether and to the nature of the solvent. With a tether length of 16 methylenes, the reaction occurs in the same fashion as the intermolecular reactions to give a p-cyclophane. With intermediate tether lengths (n = 10, 13), the reaction gives an additional p-cyclophane in which the two oxygen substituents are meta on the arene ring. This type of product is unprecedented from the reaction of carbene complexes and alkynes and is quite surprising because the formation of this product requires that the carbon-carbon bond between the alpha- and beta-carbons of the vinyl carbene complex is broken. A mechanism is proposed to account for this process which involves the crossed intramolecular [2 + 2] cycloaddition of the alkene and a ketene in a conjugated dienyl ketene to give a benzvalenone paddalane intermediate.     

Synthesis and metathesis activity of ruthenium dimethylvinyl carbene complexes

Two new dimethylvinyl carbene complexes, RuCl₂(SIMes)(PPh₃)CHCHC(CH₃)₂ and RuCl₂(SIMes)(3BP)₂CHCHC(CH₃)₂, were synthesized from RuCl₂(PCp₃)₂CHCHC(CH₃)₂. Complex RuCl₂(SIMes)(3BP)₂CHCHC(CH₃)₂ does not suffer from the problem of incomplete initiation that has been observed for the other dimethylvinyl carbene complexes, as witnessed by complete and rapid reaction with ethyl vinyl ether. Acyclic diene metathesis (ADMET) polymerization of 1,9‐decadiene with these complexes was found to give polymers with chemical and thermal properties similar to those obtained with Schrock's molybdenum catalyst. These complexes are also catalysts for ring‐opening metathesis polymerization. The parent complex RuCl₂(SIMes)(PCp₃)CHCHC(CH₃)₂ was found to give polyoctenamer with high initial heats of fusion, suggesting a dependence of the “as formed” crystallinity of the polymer on the rate of the ROMP reaction. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 6134–6145, 2005     

Catalytic activity of a half-sandwich Ru(II)-N-heterocyclic carbene complex in the oligomerization of alkynes

The ruthenium(II)-N-heterocyclic carbene complex, [RuCl₂(1-butyl-3-methylimidazol-2-ylidene)(p-cymene)] selectively catalyzes oligomerization of phenylacetylene (PA) and its derivatives to linear oligomers, containing positively charged imidazolium end-group and uncharged ones. The charged oligomer chain consists of maximum 9-11 PA monomer units after 36 h reaction at 80 °C whereas mainly pentamers are formed as other products. The H₂ atmosphere retards oligomerization of PA and hydrogenation to vinylbenzene and ethylbenzene is observed instead.     

Mechanism of olefin metathesis with catalysis by ruthenium carbene complexes: density functional studies on model systems

Gradient-corrected (BP86) density functional calculations were used to study alternative mechanisms of the metathesis reactions between ethene and model catalysts [(PH(3))(L)Cl(2)Ru[double bond]CH(2)] with L=PH3 (I) and L=C(3)N(2)H(4)=imidazol-2-ylidene (II). On the associative pathway, the initial addition of ethene is calculated to be rate-determining for both catalysts (Delta G(22-25)*[double bond] kcal mol(-1)). The dissociative pathway starts with the dissociation of phosphane, which is rather facile (Delta G(298)* is approximately equal to 5-10 kcal mol(-1)). The resulting active species (L)Cl(2)Ru[double bond]CH(2) can coordinate ethene cis or trans to L. The cis addition is unfavorable and mechanistically irrelevant (Delta G(298)* is approximately equal to 21-25 kcal mol(-1)). The trans coordination is barrierless, and the rate-determining step in the subsequent catalytic cycle is either ring closure of the complex to yield the ruthenacyclobutane (catalyst I, Delta G(298)*=12 kcal mol(-1)), or the reverse reaction (catalyst II, ring opening, Delta G(298)*=10 kcal mol(-1)), that is, II is slightly more active than I. For both catalysts, the dissociative mechanism with trans olefin coordination is favored. The relative energies of the species on this pathway can be tuned by ligand variation, as seen in (PMe(3))(2)Cl(2)Ru[double bond]CH(2) (III), in which phosphane dissociation is impeded and olefin insertion is facilitated relative to I. The differences in calculated relative energies for the model catalysts I-III can be rationalized in terms of electronic effects. Comparisons with experiment indicate that steric effects must also be considered for real catalysts containing bulky substituents.     

Synthesis of indenes from alkynes and phenyl amino chromium carbene complexes

Reactions of phenyl morpholino or pyrrolidino chromium carbene complexes with alkynes in DMF at 120–125°C resulted in exclusive formation of the indene derivatives.     

The reaction of o-xylylene complexes of ruthenium with alkynes under oxidative conditions

Oxidation of o-xylylene complexes of ruthenium in the presence of dimethyl(acetylenedicarboxylate) produces the dimethylesters of 1,4-dihydronaphthalene-2,3-dicarboxylic acid and naphthalene-2,3-dicarboxylic acid.     

Improved cross-metathesis of acrylate esters catalyzed by 2nd generation ruthenium carbene complexes

The performance of cross-metathesis reactions between acrylate esters and olefins catalyzed by Grubbs catalysts have been enhanced by the simple addition of p-cresol. For example, the efficiency of the cross metathesis reaction between methyl acrylate and 1-decene catalyzed by 2 was significantly increased by addition of p-cresol to the reaction mixture, resulting in increased product yields and E/Z ratios.