Fe-catalyzed three-component dicarbofunctionalization of unactivated alkenes with alkyl halides and Grignard reagents

A highly chemoselective iron-catalyzed three-component dicarbofunctionalization of unactivated olefins with alkyl halides (iodides and bromides) and sp²-hybridized Grignard reagents is reported. The reaction operates under fast turnover frequency and tolerates a diverse range of sp²-hybridized nucleophiles (electron-rich and electron-deficient (hetero)aryl and alkenyl Grignard reagents), alkyl halides (tertiary alkyl iodides/bromides and perfluorinated bromides), and unactivated olefins bearing diverse functional groups including tethered alkenes, ethers, protected alcohols, aldehydes, and amines to yield the desired 1,2-alkylarylated products with high regiocontrol. Further, we demonstrate that this protocol is amenable for the synthesis of new (hetero)carbocycles including tetrahydrofurans and pyrrolidines via a three-component radical cascade cyclization/arylation that forges three new C–C bonds.

A highly selective iron-catalyzed three-component dicarbofunctionalization of unactivated alkenes with alkyl halides and sp²-hybridized Grignard reagents is reported.     

Copper‐Catalyzed Carbotrifluoromethylation of Unactivated Alkenes Driven by Trifluoromethylation of Alkyl Radicals

We report herein an unprecedented protocol for radical carbotrifluoromethylation of unactivated alkenes. With Cu(OTf)₂ as the catalyst, the reaction of unactivated alkenes, TMSCF₃ and activated alkyl chlorides at room temperature provides the corresponding carbotrifluoromethylation products in satisfactory yields. Directed by trifluoromethylation of alkyl radicals, the method exhibits an excellent regioselectivity that is opposite to those driven by CF₃ radical addition.     

Cobalt-catalyzed reductive coupling of saturated alkyl halides with activated alkenes

[reaction: see text] An efficient cobalt-catalyzed reductive coupling reaction of alkyl halides with electron-withdrawing alkenes (CH(2)=CR(1)EWG, EWG = electron-withdrawing group) in the presence of water and zinc powder in acetonitrile to give the corresponding Michael-type addition product (RCH(2)CR(1)EWG) was described. The methodology is versatile such that unactivated primary, secondary, and tertiary alkyl bromides and iodides and various conjugated alkenes including acrylates, acrylonitrile, methyl vinyl ketone, and vinyl sulfone all successfully participate in this coupling reaction. For the alkyl halides used in the reaction, the iodides generally gave better yields compared to those of the corresponding bromides. It is a unique method employing CoI(2)dppe, zinc, and alkyl halides, affording conjugate addition products in high yields. Mechanistically, the reaction appears to follow an oxidative addition driven route rather than the previously reported radical route.     

Salts of Mosher’s thioacid: agents for determining the enantiomer excess of SN2 substrates

The racemic and the (S)-enantiomer of Mosher’s thioacid, 2-methoxy-2-trifluoromethylphenylacetic thioacid, form air-stable salts with Proton Sponge [1,8-bis(dimethylamino)naphthalene]. These salts are powerful nucleophiles that react cleanly (S_N2 inversion) in CDCl₃ with optically active alkyl halides ranging in reactivities from unactivated alkyl bromides and iodides to benzylic bromides. The diastereomeric excess (de) of the thioester products indicates the enantiomeric excess (ee) of the starting alkyl halides.     

Electroreductive Dicarboxylation of Unactivated Skipped Dienes with CO2

Carboxylation of easily available alkenes with CO₂ is highly important to afford value-added carboxylic acids. Although dicarboxylation of activated alkenes, especially 1,3-dienes, has been widely investigated, the challenging dicarboxylation of unactivated 1,n-dienes (n>3) with CO₂ remains unexplored. Herein, we report the first dicarboxylation of unactivated skipped dienes with CO₂ via electrochemistry, affording valuable dicarboxylic acids. Control experiments and DFT calculations support the single electron transfer (SET) reduction of CO₂ to its radical anion, which is followed by sluggish radical addition to unactivated alkenes, SET reduction of unstabilized alkyl radicals to carbanions and nucleophilic attack on CO₂ to give desired products. This reaction features mild reaction conditions, broad substrate scope, facile derivations of products and promising application in polymer chemistry.     

Catalytic Reactions with Hydrosilane and Carbon Monoxide [New synthetic methods (30)]

The reagent hydrosilane/carbon monoxide opens up new possibilities for organic synthesis. Four cases will be discussed: 1. The reaction of olefins with hydrosilane (trialkylsilane) and carbon monoxide in the presence of Co, Ru, and Rh complexes leads to enol silyl ethers having one more carbon atom that the olefins. 2. Cyclic ethers underto carbonylative ring opening to ω-siloxyaldehydes when reacted with hydrosilane and carbon monoxide in the presence of Co₂(CO)₈ as catalysts 3. Aldehydes are catalytically converted into the next higher α-siloxyaldehydes or 1,2-bis(siloxy)alkenes depending on the reaction conditions used. 4. The reaction of alkyl acetates proceeds in various ways depending on the nature of the alkyl group; enol silyl ethers or alkenes are optained.–Mechanisms of these Co₂(CO)₈ catalyzed reactions using hydrosilane and carbon monoxide are discussed in which HCo(CO)_n or R₃SiCo(CO)_nL function as catalytically active agents. With these species there are four types of catalytic cycles.–The synthetic possibilities of these catalytic reactions have still not been fully explored.     

Intermolecular Photocatalyzed Heck‐like Coupling of Unactivated Alkyl Bromides by a Dinuclear Gold Complex

A practical protocol for a photocatalyzed alkyl‐Heck‐like reaction of unactivated alkyl bromides and different alkenes promoted by dinuclear gold photoredox catalysis in the presence of an inorganic base is reported. Primary, secondary, and tertiary unactivated alkyl bromides with β‐hydrogen can be applied. Esters, aldehydes, ketones, nitriles, alcohols, heterocycles, alkynes, alkenes, ethers, and halogen moieties are all well tolerated. In addition to 1,1‐diarylalkenes, silylenolethers and enamides can also be applied, which further increases the synthetic potential of the reaction. The mild reaction conditions, broad substrate scope, and an excellent functional‐group tolerance deliver an ideal tool for synthetic chemists that can even be used for challenging late‐stage modifications of complex natural products.     

Directed Asymmetric Nickel-Catalyzed Reductive 1,2-Diarylation of Electronically Unactivated Alkenes

Transition-metal catalyzed intermolecular 1,2-diarylation of electronically unactivated alkenes has emerged as an extensive research topic in organic synthesis. However, most examples are mainly limited to terminal alkenes. Furthermore, transition-metal catalyzed asymmetric 1,2-diarylation of unactivated alkenes still remains unsolved and is a formidable challenge. Herein, we describe a highly efficient directed nickel-catalyzed reductive 1,2-diarylation of unactivated internal alkenes with high diastereoselectivities. More importantly, our further effort towards enantioselective 1,2-diarylation of the unactivated terminal and challenging internal alkenes is achieved, furnishing various polyarylalkanes featuring benzylic stereocenters in high yields and with good to high enantioselectivities and high diastereoselectivities. Interestingly, the generation of cationic Ni-catalyst by adding alkali metal fluoride is the key to increased efficiency of this enantioselective reaction.     

Controllable access to trifluoromethyl-containing indoles and indolines: palladium-catalyzed regioselective functionalization of unactivated alkenes with trifluoroacetimidoyl chlorides

The synthesis of diverse products from the same starting materials is always attractive in organic chemistry. Here, a palladium-catalyzed substrate-controlled regioselective functionalization of unactivated alkenes with trifluoroacetimidoyl chlorides has been developed, which provides a direct but controllable access to a variety of structurally diverse trifluoromethyl-containing indoles and indolines. In more detail, with respect to γ,δ-alkenes, 1,1-geminal difunctionalization of unactivated alkenes with trifluoroacetimidoyl chloride enables the [4 + 1] annulation to produce indoles; as for β,γ-alkenes, a [3 + 2] heteroannulation with the hydrolysis product of trifluoroacetimidoyl chloride through 1,2-vicinal difunctionalization of alkenes occurs to deliver indoline products. The structure of alkene substrates differentiates the regioselectivity of the reaction.

A palladium-catalyzed dual functionalization of unactivated alkenes with trifluoroacetimidoyl chlorides toward the synthesis of structurally diverse trifluoromethyl-containing indoles and indolines has been developed.     

Copper‐Catalyzed Oxyboration of Unactivated Alkenes

The first regiodivergent oxyboration of unactivated terminal alkenes is reported, using copper alkoxide as a catalyst, bis(pinacolato)diboron [(Bpin)₂] as a boron source, and (2,2,6,6‐tetramethylpiperidin‐1‐yl)oxyl (TEMPO) as an oxygen source. The reaction is compatible with various functional groups. Two regioisomers are selectively produced by selecting the appropriate ligands on copper. The products may be used as a linchpin precursor for various other functionalizations, and net processes such as carbooxygenation, aminooxygenation, and dioxygenation of alkenes can be achieved after C?B bond transformations. Mechanistic studies indicate that the reaction involves the following steps: 1) Transmetalation between CuOtBu and (Bpin)₂ to generate a borylcopper species; 2) regiodivergent borylcupration of alkenes; 3) oxidation of the thus‐generated C?Cu bond to give an alkyl radical; 4) trapping of the resulting alkyl radical by TEMPO.     

Theoretical Study on the Mechanism of Ni‐Catalyzed Alkyl–Alkyl Suzuki Cross‐Coupling

Ni‐catalyzed cross‐coupling of unactivated secondary alkyl halides with alkylboranes provides an efficient way to construct alkyl–alkyl bonds. The mechanism of this reaction with the Ni/ L1 ( L1 =trans‐N,N′‐dimethyl‐1,2‐cyclohexanediamine) system was examined for the first time by using theoretical calculations. The feasible mechanism was found to involve a Ni^I–Ni^III catalytic cycle with three main steps: transmetalation of [Ni^I( L1 )X] (X=Cl, Br) with 9‐borabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane (9‐BBN)R₁ to produce [Ni^I( L1 )(R₁)], oxidative addition of R₂X with [Ni^I( L1 )(R₁)] to produce [Ni^III( L1 )(R₁)(R₂)X] through a radical pathway, and C? C reductive elimination to generate the product and [Ni^I( L1 )X]. The transmetalation step is rate‐determining for both primary and secondary alkyl bromides. KOiBu decreases the activation barrier of the transmetalation step by forming a potassium alkyl boronate salt with alkyl borane. Tertiary alkyl halides are not reactive because the activation barrier of reductive elimination is too high (+34.7 kcal mol^?1). On the other hand, the cross‐coupling of alkyl chlorides can be catalyzed by Ni/ L2 ( L2 =trans‐N,N′‐dimethyl‐1,2‐diphenylethane‐1,2‐diamine) because the activation barrier of transmetalation with L2 is lower than that with L1 . Importantly, the Ni⁰–Ni^II catalytic cycle is not favored in the present systems because reductive elimination from both singlet and triplet [Ni^II( L1 )(R₁)(R₂)] is very difficult.     

Visible‐Light‐Driven Palladium‐Catalyzed Radical Alkylation of C−H Bonds with Unactivated Alkyl Bromides

Reported herein is a novel visible‐light photoredox system with Pd(PPh₃)₄ as the sole catalyst for the realization of the first direct cross‐coupling of C(sp³)−H bonds in N‐aryl tetrahydroisoquinolines with unactivated alkyl bromides. Moreover, intra‐ and intermolecular alkylations of heteroarenes were also developed under mild reaction conditions. A variety of tertiary, secondary, and primary alkyl bromides undergo reaction to generate C(sp³)−C(sp³) and C(sp²)−C(sp³) bonds in moderate to excellent yields. These redox‐neutral reactions feature broad substrate scope (>60 examples), good functional‐group tolerance, and facile generation of quaternary centers. Mechanistic studies indicate that the simple palladium complex acts as the visible‐light photocatalyst and radicals are involved in the process.     

Manganese/Cobalt Bimetallic Relay Catalysis for Divergent Dehydrogenative Difluoroalkylation of Alkenes

The involvement of manganese radical for halogen atom transfer (XAT) reactions has been esteemed as one reliable method but encountered with limited catalytic models. In this paper, a novel bimetallic relay catalysis of Mn₂(CO)₁₀ and cobaloxime has been developed for divergent dehydrogenative difluoroalkylation of alkenes using commercially available difluoroalkyl bromides. A wide range of structurally diverse terminal, cyclic and internal alkenes as well as tetrasubstituted alkenes are found to be good coupling partners to deliver difluoroalkylated allylic products and difluoromethylated cyclic products, accompanied with the production of H₂ as the by-product. This bimetallic relay strategy features broad substrate scope, mild reaction conditions and excellent functional group compatibility. Its success represents an important step-forward to expedite the construction of a rich library of difluoroalkylated products.     

Nickel‐Catalyzed Asymmetric Reductive Arylalkylation of Unactivated Alkenes

Reported is an asymmetric reductive dicarbofunctionalization of unactivated alkenes. Under the catalysis of a Ni/BOX system, various aryl bromides, incorporating a pendant olefinic unit, were successfully reacted with an array of primary alkyl bromides in the presence of Zn as a reductant, furnishing a series of benzene‐fused cyclic compounds bearing a quaternary stereocenter in high enantioselectivities. Notably, this reaction avoids the use of pregenerated organometallics and demonstrates high tolerance of sensitive functionalities. The preliminary mechanistic investigations reveal that this Ni‐catalyzed reaction proceeds as a cascade consisting of migratory insertion and cross‐coupling with a nickel(I)‐mediated intramolecular 5‐exo cyclization as the enantiodetermining step.     

Generation and Reactivity of Amidyl Radicals: Manganese-Mediated Atom-Transfer Reaction

A simple and efficient protocol to generate amidyl radicals from amine functionalities through a manganese-mediated atom-transfer reaction has been developed. This approach employs an earth-abundant and inexpensive manganese complex, Mn₂(CO)₁₀, as the catalyst and visible light as the energy input. Using this strategy, site-selective chlorination of unactivated C(sp³)−H bonds of aliphatic amines and intramolecular/intermolecular chloroaminations of unactivated alkenes were readily realized under mild reaction conditions, thus providing efficient access to a range of synthetically valuable alkyl chlorides, chlorinated pyrrolidines, and vicinal chloroamine derivatives. These practical reactions exhibit a broad substrate scope and tolerate a wide array of functional groups, and complex molecules including various marketed drug derivatives.     

Cobalt-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions of alkyl halides with aryl Grignard reagents and their application to sequential radical cyclization/cross-coupling reactions

Reactions of alkyl halides with arylmagnesium bromides in the presence of cobalt(II)(diphosphine) complexes are discussed. Treatment of 1-bromooctane with phenylmagnesium bromide with the aid of a catalytic amount of CoCl₂(dppp) [DPPP=1,3-bis(diphenylphosphino)propane] yielded octylbenzene in good yield. The reaction mechanism would include single electron transfer from an electron-rich cobalt complex to alkyl halide to generate the corresponding alkyl radical. The mechanism was justified by CoCl₂(dppe)-catalyzed [DPPE=1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)ethane] sequential radical cyclization/cross-coupling reactions of 6-halo-1-hexene derivatives that yielded benzyl-substituted cyclopentane skeletons.     

Palladium‐Catalyzed Oxidative Difunctionalization of Alkenes with α‐Carbonyl Alkyl Bromides Initiated through a Heck‐type Insertion: A Route to Indolin‐2‐ones

The oxidative interception of various σ‐alkyl palladium(II) intermediates with additional reagents for the difunctionalization of alkenes is an important research area. A new palladium‐catalyzed oxidative difunctionalization reaction of alkenes with α‐carbonyl alkyl bromides is described, in which the σ‐alkyl palladium(II) intermediate is generated through a Heck insertion and trapped using an aryl C(sp²)? H bond. This method can be applied to various α‐carbonyl alkyl bromides, including primary, secondary, and tertiary α‐bromoalkyl esters, ketones, and amides.     

Trifluoromethylchlorosulfonylation of Alkenes: Evidence for an Inner‐Sphere Mechanism by a Copper Phenanthroline Photoredox Catalyst

A visible‐light‐mediated procedure for the unprecedented trifluoromethylchlorosulfonylation of unactivated alkenes is presented. It uses [Cu(dap)₂]Cl as catalyst, and contrasts with [Ru(bpy)₃]Cl₂, [Ir(ppy)₂(dtbbpy)]PF₆, or eosin Y that exclusively give rise to trifluoromethylchlorination of the same alkenes. It is assumed that [Cu(dap)₂]Cl plays a dual role, that is, acting both as an electron transfer reagent as well as coordinating the reactants in the bond forming processes.     

Carboxylation of Aromatic and Aliphatic Bromides and Triflates with CO2 by Dual Visible‐Light–Nickel Catalysis

We report the efficient carboxylation of bromides and triflates with K₂CO₃ as the source of CO₂ in the presence of an organic photocatalyst in combination with a nickel complex under visible light irradiation at room temperature. The reaction is compatible with a variety of functional groups and has been successfully applied to the synthesis and derivatization of biologically active molecules. In particular, the carboxylation of unactivated cyclic alkyl bromides proceeded well with our protocol, thus extending the scope of this transformation. Spectroscopic and spectroelectrochemical investigations indicated the generation of a Ni⁰ species as a catalytic reactive intermediate.     

Palladium(II)-Catalyzed Enantioselective Azidation of Unactivated Alkenes

The first Pd-catalyzed enantioselective azidation of unactivated alkenes has been established by using readily accessible 1-azido-1,2-benziodoxol-3(1H)-one (ABX) as an azidating reagent, which affords a wide variety of structurally diverse 3-N₃-substituted piperidines in good yields with excellent enantioselectivity. The reaction features good functional-group compatibility and mild reaction conditions. Notably, both an electrophilic azidating reagent and the sterically bulky chiral pyridinyl-oxazoline (Pyox) ligand are crucial to the successful reaction.