Enantioselective C?H Bond Functionalization Triggered by Radical Trifluoromethylation of Unactivated Alkene

An asymmetric unactivated alkene/C H bond difunctionalization reaction for the concomitant construction of C CF₃ and C O bonds was realized by using a Cu/Brønsted acid cooperative catalytic system, thus providing facile access to valuable chiral CF₃‐containing N,O‐aminals with excellent regio‐, chemo‐, and enantioselectivity. Mechanistic studies revealed that this reaction may proceed by an unprecedented 1,5‐hydride shift involving activation of unactivated alkenes and a radical trifluoromethylation to initiate subsequent enantioselective functionalization of C H bonds. Control experiments also suggested that chiral Brønsted acid plays multiple roles and not only controls the stereoselectivity but also increases the reaction rate through activation of Togni’s reagent.     

Iridium Catalysis for C?H Bond Arylation of Heteroarenes with Iodoarenes

Efficient couplings using equimolar quantities of each coupling partner and multiple C? H bond arylation reactions are achieved with an Ir‐based catalytic system for the C? H bond arylation of electron‐rich heteroarenes with iodoarenes to construct extended π‐systems. The dramatic ligand effect on reaction efficiency leads to the discovery that Crabtree's catalyst (see scheme) is the optimal catalyst precursor.

     

Cobalt‐Catalyzed C?H Cyanation of Arenes and Heteroarenes

Carboxylate assistance proved to be the key for the success of efficient cobalt(III)‐catalyzed C H cyanations. Thus, an in situ generated cationic cobalt complex was identified as a versatile catalyst for the site‐selective synthesis of various aromatic and heteroaromatic nitriles with ample substrate scope.     

Functionalization of polymeric surfaces by simple photoactivation of C?H bonds

A universal photoassisted pathway to functionalize polymeric surfaces is presented by transferring the inert surface sp³ C? H bonds into reactive groups, such as ? SO₃H, ? NH₂, ? SH, and ? COOH. The proposed method uses acetone as photoinitiator and different phenols with a para substituent XR as the reactants. Acetone excited by UV irradiation acts as a pair of scissors cutting both the surface C? H bonds of the polymer substrate and the O? H bonds of phenol, leading to the formation of carbon‐centered surface chain free radicals and oxygen‐centered phenoxy free radicals. By coupling of these two radicals, a variety of functional X groups with an R spacer from XR species of different phenol reactants were readily bonded to the polymeric surfaces, where phenol reactants included 4‐hydroxylbenzene sulfonic acid for ? SO₃H, p‐aminophenol and tyramine for ? NH₂, 4‐hydroxythiophenol for ? SH, and tyrosine for ? COOH. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011     

Ruthenium‐Catalyzed Cascade C?H Functionalization of Phenylacetophenones

Three orthogonal cascade C H functionalization processes are described, based on ruthenium‐catalyzed C H alkenylation. 1‐Indanones, indeno indenes, and indeno furanones were accessed through cascade pathways by using arylacetophenones as substrates under conditions of catalytic [{Ru(p‐cymene)Cl₂}₂] and stoichiometric Cu(OAc)₂. Each transformation uses C H functionalization methods to form C C bonds sequentially, with the indeno furanone synthesis featuring a C O bond formation as the terminating step. This work demonstrates the power of ruthenium‐catalyzed alkenylation as a platform reaction to develop more complex transformations, with multiple C H functionalization steps taking place in a single operation to access novel carbocyclic structures.     

Palladium‐Catalyzed Direct C?H Functionalization of Benzoquinone

A direct Pd‐catalyzed C H functionalization of benzoquinone (BQ) can be controlled to give either mono‐ or disubstituted BQ, including the installation of two different groups in a one‐pot procedure. BQ can now be directly functionalized with aryl, heteroaryl, cycloalkyl, and cycloalkene groups and, moreover, the reaction is conducted in environmentally benign water or acetone as solvents.     

Oxindole Synthesis by Direct Coupling of C?H and C?H Centers

An sp ² /sp ³ get‐together : A novel and efficient method can be used to synthesize 3,3‐disubstitued oxindoles by the direct intramolecular oxidative coupling of an aryl C? H and a C? H center (see scheme; DMF=N,N‐dimethylformamide).

     

Practical and Highly Selective C?H Functionalization of Structurally Diverse Ethers

A trityl ion mediated C H functionalization of ethers with a wide range of nucleophiles at ambient temperature has been developed. The reaction displays high chemoselectivity and good functional group tolerance. The protocol also exhibits excellent regio‐ and diastereoselectivities for the unsymmetric ethers, thus stereoselectively generating highly functionalized disubstituted 2,5‐trans tetrahydrofurans (THF), 2,6‐trans tetrahydropyrans (THP), 2,6‐trans dihydropyrans (DHP), and 1,3‐trans isochromans, and highlighting the capacity of the protocol in complex molecule synthesis.     

Heterogeneous Platinum‐Catalyzed C?H Perfluoroalkylation of Arenes and Heteroarenes

Fluorinated organic compounds are gaining increasing interest for life science applications. The replacement of hydrogen in arenes or heteroarenes by a perfluoroalkyl group has a profound influence on the physical and biological properties of such building blocks. Here, an operationally simple protocol for the direct C H perfluoroalkylation of (hetero)arenes with R_fI or R_fBr has been developed, using a robust supported platinum catalyst. The ready availability of the starting materials, the excellent substrate tolerance, and the reusability of the catalyst make this method attractive for the synthesis of a variety of perfluoroalkyl‐substituted aromatic compounds. Preliminary mechanistic studies revealed the formation of radicals to be crucial in the reaction system.     

Selective Alkenylation and Hydroalkenylation of Enol Phosphates through Direct C?H Functionalization

An efficient and selective Rh‐catalyzed direct C H functionalization reaction of enol phosphates was developed. The method is applicable to a variety of coupling partners, including activated alkenes, alkynes, and allenes, and leads to the formation of various valuable alkenylated and hydroalkenylated enol phosphates through the action of the phosphate directing group. The versatility and utility of the coupling products were demonstrated through further transformations into synthetically useful building blocks.