Cyclopalladated Ferrocenylimine Catalyzed Chlorination of 2‐Arylbenzoxazoles

An efficient and facile protocol for palladacycle‐catalyzed chlorination of 2‐arylbenzoxazoles was developed. The results represent the first examples involving the palladacycle as the catalyst for such chlorination. This chlorination was not a ligand‐directed ortho‐C H activation, but an electrophilic substitution process at the para‐position of the nitrogen atom in the benzo ring of benzoxazole moiety, the regiochemistry of which had been confirmed by HMBC spectral analysis. The catalytic system could tolerate various halogen atoms, such as F, Cl and Br, affording the corresponding products in moderate to excellent yields.     

(C6F5)3B Catalyzed Chemoselective and ortho‐Selective Substitution of Phenols with α‐Aryl α‐Diazoesters

The development of an efficient method for the site‐selective substitution of unprotected phenols has long been considered as an attractive but challenging task. Herein, we describe a highly chemo‐ and ortho‐selective substitution reaction of phenols with α‐aryl α‐diazoacetates with commercially available (C₆F₅)₃B as the catalyst. This reaction proceeds under simple and mild conditions with high efficiency, it features a wide substrate scope and can be easily scaled up.     

Phase‐Transfer‐Catalyzed Asymmetric Synthesis of Axially Chiral Anilides

Catalytic asymmetric synthesis of axially chiral o‐iodoanilides and o‐tert‐butylanilides as useful chiral building blocks was achieved by means of binaphthyl‐modified chiral quaternary ammonium‐salt‐catalyzed N‐alkylations under phase‐transfer conditions. The synthetic utility of axially chiral products was demonstrated in various transformations. For example, axially chiral N‐allyl‐o‐iodoanilide was transformed to 3‐methylindoline by means of radical cyclization with high chirality transfer from axial chirality to C‐centered chirality. Furthermore, stereochemical information on axial chirality in o‐tert‐butylanilides could be used as a template to control the stereochemistry of subsequent transformations. The transition‐state structure of the present phase‐transfer reaction was discussed on the basis of the X‐ray crystal structure of ammonium anilide, which was prepared from binaphthyl‐modified chiral ammonium bromide and o‐iodoanilide. The chiral tetraalkylammonium bromide as a phase‐transfer catalyst recognized the steric difference between the ortho substituents on anilide to obtain high enantioselectivity. The size and structural effects of the ortho substituents on anilide were investigated, and a wide variety of axially chiral anilides that possess various functional groups could be synthesized with high enantioselectivities. This method is the only general way to access a variety of axially chiral anilides in a highly enantioselective fashion reported to date.     

Palladium‐Catalyzed Amination of Aryl Sulfides with Anilines

A combination of a palladium–NHC catalyst and potassium hexamethyldisilazide enables the amination of aryl sulfides with anilines to afford a wide variety of diarylamines. The reaction conditions are versatile enough for the reaction of even bulky ortho‐substituted aryl sulfides. This amination can be applied to the modular synthesis of N‐aryl carbazoles from the corresponding ortho‐bromothioanisoles. As aryl sulfoxides undergo extended Pummerer reactions to afford ortho‐substituted aryl sulfides, the Pummerer products are thus useful substrates for the amination to culminate in efficient syntheses of a 2‐anilinobenzothiophene and an indole as proof‐of‐principle of the utility of the extended Pummerer reaction/amination cascade.     

Ortho‐Quinone Methides as Reactive Intermediates in Asymmetric Brønsted Acid Catalyzed Cycloadditions with Unactivated Alkenes by Exclusive Activation of the Electrophile

An efficient method for the highly enantioselective synthesis of chiral chromanes bearing multiple stereogenic centers was developed. A chiral BINOL‐based N‐triflylphosphoramide proved to be an effective catalyst for the in situ generation of ortho‐quinone methides (o‐QMs) and their subsequent cycloaddition reaction with unactivated alkenes provided chromanes with excellent diastereo‐ and enantioselectivity.     

C‐2 Selective Arylation of Indoles with Heterogeneous Nanopalladium and Diaryliodonium Salts

A simple and efficient method to prepare synthetically useful 2‐arylindoles is presented, using a heterogeneous Pd catalyst and diaryliodonium salts in water under mild conditions. A remarkably low leaching of metal catalyst was observed under the applied conditions. The developed protocol is highly C‐2 selective and tolerates structural variations both in the indole and in the diaryliodonium salt. Arylations of both N?H indoles and N‐protected indoles with ortho‐substituted, electron‐rich, electron‐deficient, or halogenated diaryliodonium salts were achieved to give the desired products in high to excellent isolated yields within 6 to 15 h at room temperature or 40 °C.     

Mild, convenient and efficient synthesis of novel 2,2-dichloro-1,3-diarylaziridines from Schiff bases by phase transfer CTAB catalysis under low concentration alkaline conditions

A mild and efficient method for preparation of novel 2,2-dichloro-1,3-diarylaziridines from Schiff base compounds in the presence of Ar-cetyl-N,N,N-trimethyl ammonium bromide(CTAB) as phase transfer catalyst has been described.The reaction is dramatically enhanced in the presence of quaternary ammonium salt.The corresponding products have been obtained in excellent yields,high purity and short reaction times.     

Visible‐Light‐Induced ortho‐Selective Migration on Pyridyl Ring: Trifluoromethylative Pyridylation of Unactivated Alkenes

The photocatalyzed ortho‐selective migration on a pyridyl ring has been achieved for the site‐selective trifluoromethylative pyridylation of unactivated alkenes. The overall process is initiated by the selective addition of a CF₃ radical to the alkene to provide a nucleophilic alkyl radical intermediate, which enables an intramolecular endo addition exclusively to the ortho‐position of the pyridinium salt. Both secondary and tertiary alkyl radicals are well‐suited for addition to the C2‐position of pyridinium salts to ultimately provide synthetically valuable C2‐fluoroalkyl functionalized pyridines. Moreover, the method was successfully applied to the reaction with P‐centered radicals. The utility of this transformation was further demonstrated by the late‐stage functionalization of complex bioactive molecules.     

DMSO-catalyzed chlorination of alcohols using N-phenylbenzimidoyl chloride

N-phenylbenzimidoyl chloride has been demonstrated as an efficient chlorination reagent catalyzed by dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) in conversion of alcohols to corresponding chlorides. The reaction conditions were mild, and most of the substrates gave satisfactory yields. The configuration inversion of the chlorination was proved using optically active phenyl alcohols. The amount of DMSO can be as low as 0.001 eq without reducing the efficiency of the chlorination. A plausible mechanism for the reaction was proposed and proved by experiments. The reaction is stereoselective and potentially chemoselective among primary benzyl alcohols, secondary benzyl alcohols, and unactivated aliphatic alcohols.     

One‐Pot Cascade Transformation of Glucal into Structurally Diverse Drug‐Like Scaffolds

A diversity‐oriented synthesis strategy to produce three types of structurally drug‐like N‐heterocyclic‐fused rings has been developed from abundant biomass‐derived d ‐glucal, aniline and water in a stereoselective manner. The overall transformation which entails a cascade of Ferrier reaction and 4π conrotatory imino‐Nazarov cyclization was performed in one‐pot allowing convenient preparation of scaffolds of high molecular complexity from relatively simple starting materials. While indoline‐fused products were readily accessible using ortho‐unsubstituted secondary anilines as substrates, reactions with ortho‐hydroxyl‐anilines furnished fused 1,4‐benzoxazines instead. In both cases, InBr₃ acted as the Lewis acid catalyst. By altering InBr₃ to Ln(OTf)₃, the indoline‐fused products could be further converted into tetrahydroquinoline‐fused cyclopentenones via ensuing retro‐ene rearrangement.     

Rhodium(III)‐Catalyzed [4+1] Annulation of Aromatic and Vinylic Carboxylic Acids with Allenes: An Efficient Method Towards Vinyl‐Substituted Phthalides and 2‐Furanones

A highly regio‐ and stereoselective synthesis of 3,3‐disubstituted phthalides from aryl carboxylic acids and allenes using a rhodium(III) catalyst has been demonstrated. The reaction features broad functional group tolerance and provides a simple and straightforward route to the synthesis of various 3‐vinyl‐substituted phthalides. Furthermore, the catalytic reaction can also be applied to the synthesis of biologically active 5‐vinyl‐substituted 2‐furanones from α,β‐unsaturated carboxylic acids and allenes. The reactions proceed through a carboxylate‐assisted ortho‐C?H activation and [4+1] annulation. The preliminary mechanistic studies suggest that a C?H cleavage is the rate‐determining step.     

Sodium Formate‐Catalyzed One‐Pot Synthesis of Benzopyranopyrimidines and 4‐Thio‐substituted 4H‐Chromenes via Multicomponent Reaction at Room Temperature

A simple, straightforward and highly efficient multicomponent one‐pot synthesis of a series of pharmaceutically interesting benzopyranopyrimidine and 4H‐chromene derivatives has been developed on the basis of low‐cost and environment‐friendly sodium formate catalyst via tandem reactions of salicylic aldehydes, malononitrile, and cyclic secondary amines in ethanol at room temperature. Nature of nucleophile used in this reaction directs the course of the reaction; cyclic secondary amines result in the formation of benzopyrano[2,3‐d]pyrimidines, whereas thiophenol furnish corresponding 4‐thio‐subtituted 4H‐chromenes under the same reaction conditions. High atom‐economy, good yields, eco‐friendly, and mild reaction conditions are some of the important features of this protocol.     

Cu(I)‐Catalyzed Regioselective and Highly Efficient One‐Pot Synthesis of Novel 1,2,3‐Triazoles Decorated with Pyridine and Heterocyclic Amines

An efficient one‐pot synthesis of 1,2,3‐triazoles via the three‐component coupling reaction between propargyl bromide, secondary amines, and 3‐azidopyridine in the presence of CuI as catalyst has been presented. The reaction is highly regioselective and afforded novel 1,4‐disubstituted‐1,2,3‐triazoles in excellent yields by the [3 + 2] Huisgen cycloaddition reaction. This method avoids isolation and handling of terminal acetylenes. The ease of purification has made this methodology clean and safe for the synthesis of 1,2,3‐triazoles with a broad scope.     

Facile construction of symmetric biaryls using (BeDABCO)2Pd2Cl6 as an efficient and highly active catalyst under microwave irradiation

An efficient catalytic system using (BeDABCO)₂Pd₂Cl₆ (BeDABCO, benzyl‐1,4‐diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane) was developed for the homo‐coupling reaction of various aryl halides. Due to the combination of ionic homogeneous metal catalyst and microwave irradiation, symmetric biaryls were produced in excellent yields and short reaction times in N‐methyl‐2‐pyrrolidone at 120 °C. BeDABCO as an efficient ligand and also a quaternary ammonium salt had an efficient stabilizing effect on the Pd(0) species in this coupling reaction. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Synthesis of Redshifted Azobenzene Photoswitches by Late‐Stage Functionalization

Azobenzenes are versatile photoswitches that can be cycled between their trans‐ and cis‐configuration with light. The wavelengths required for this isomerization are substantially shifted from the UV to the visible range through tetra‐ortho‐chlorination. These halogenated azobenzenes display unique photoswitching characteristics, but their syntheses remain limited and inefficient. A new general method for the synthesis of tetra‐ortho‐chloro azobenzenes has been developed, which relies on direct palladium(II)‐catalyzed C?H activation of pre‐existing standard azobenzenes. This late‐stage functionalization has a broad substrate scope and can be used to create a variety of useful building blocks for the construction of more elaborate redshifted photopharmaceuticals. This method is used to prepare red‐ AzCA‐4 , a photoswitchable vanilloid that enables optical control of the cation channel TRPV1 with visible light.     

Dimeric ortho‐palladated homoveratrylamine as an efficient homogeneous catalyst for copper‐free Sonogashira cross‐coupling reaction

The catalytic activity of ortho‐palladated [Pd{C6H2(CH2CH2NH2)‐(OMe)2,3,4}(m‐Br)]2, a complex of homoveratrylamine in the copper‐free Sonogashira coupling reaction has been investigated. This complex is a catalyst that is efficient, stable and non‐sensitive to air and moisture in the Sonogashira reaction. In this homogeneous catalytic system, various aryl halides were efficiently coupled with phenylacetylene in mostly moderate to good yields in N‐methylpyrrolidone at 100 °C under copper‐free conditions. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Hydrogen Bond Directed ortho‐Selective C−H Borylation of Secondary Aromatic Amides

Reported is an iridium catalyst for ortho‐selective C?H borylation of challenging secondary aromatic amide substrates, and the regioselectivity is controlled by hydrogen‐bond interactions. The BAIPy ‐Ir catalyst forms three hydrogen bonds with the substrate during the crucial activation step, and allows ortho‐C?H borylation with high selectivity. The catalyst displays unprecedented ortho selectivities for a wide variety of substrates that differ in electronic and steric properties, and the catalyst tolerates various functional groups. The regioselective C?H borylation catalyst is readily accessible and converts substrates on gram scale with high selectivity and conversion.     

MCM‐41‐Supported Bidentate Phosphine Rhodium Complex: An Efficient and Recyclable Heterogeneous Catalyst for the Hydrosilylation of Olefins

MCM‐41‐supported bidentate phosphine rhodium complex (MCM‐41‐2P‐RhCl₃) was conveniently synthesized from commercially available and cheapγ‐aminopropyltriethoxysilane via immobilization on MCM‐41, followed by reacting with diphenylphosphinomethanol and rhodium chloride. It was found that the title complex is a highly efficient catalyst for the hydrosilylation of olefins with triethoxysilane and can be recovered and recycled by a simple filtration of the reaction solution and used for at least 10 consecutive trials without any decreases in activity.     

Selective ortho-chlorination of phenol using sulfuryl chloride in the presence of t-butylaminomethyl polystyrene as a heterogeneous amine catalyst

Reaction of phenol with sulfuryl chloride in the presence of a catalytic amount of the heterogeneous amine catalyst, t-butylaminomethyl polystyrene, in a nonpolar solvent, proceeds with high conversion (∼98%) and with high selectivity (∼89%) to ortho-chlorophenol. The catalyst is stable under the chlorination conditions, and can easily be regenerated by filtration and reused. This method could be applicable to other phenols.     

Metal‐Free Arylation of Oxygen Nucleophiles with Diaryliodonium Salts

Phenols and carboxylic acids are efficiently arylated with diaryliodonium salts. The reaction conditions are mild, metal free, and avoid the use of halogenated solvents, additives, and excess reagents. The products are obtained in good‐to‐excellent yields after short reaction times. Steric hindrance is very well tolerated, both in the nucleophile and diaryliodonium salt. The scope includes ortho‐ and halo‐substituted products, which are difficult to obtain by metal‐catalyzed protocols. Many functional groups are tolerated, including carbonyl groups, heteroatoms, and alkenes. Unsymmetric salts can be chemoselectively utilized to obtain products with hitherto unreported levels of steric congestion. The arylation has been extended to sulfonic acids, which can be converted to sulfonate esters by two different approaches. With recent advances in efficient synthetic procedures for diaryliodonium salts the reagents are now inexpensive and readily available. The iodoarene byproduct formed from the iodonium reagent can be recovered quantitatively and used to regenerate the diaryliodonium salt, which improves the atom economy.