Stereoselective Synthesis of Highly Substituted Conjugated Dienes via Pd‐Catalyzed Carbonylation of 1,3‐Diynes

The stereoselective synthesis of conjugated dienes was realized for the first time via Pd‐catalyzed alkoxycarbonylation of easily available 1,3‐diynes. Key to success is the utilization of the specific ligand 1,1′‐ferrocenediyl‐bis(tert‐butyl(pyridin‐2‐yl)phosphine) ( L1 ), which allows this novel transformation to proceed at room temperature. A range of 1,2,3,4‐tetrasubstituted conjugated dienes are obtained in this straightforward access in high yields and selectivities. The synthetic utility of the protocol is showcased in the concise synthesis of several important intermediates for construction of natural products rac‐cagayanin, rac‐galbulin, rac‐agastinol, and cannabisin G.     

CuI/Pd0 Cooperative Dual Catalysis: Tunable Stereoselective Construction of Tetra‐Substituted Alkenes

This paper describes a tunable and stereoselective dual catalytic system that uses copper and palladium reagents. This cooperative silylcupration and palladium‐catalyzed allylation readily affords trisubstituted alkenylsilanes. Fine‐tuning the reaction conditions allows selective access to one stereoisomer over the other. This new methodology tolerates different substituents on both coupling partners with high levels of stereoselectivity. The one‐pot reaction involving a Cu^I/Pd⁰ cooperative dual catalyst directly addresses the need to develop more time‐efficient and less‐wasteful synthetic pathways.     

A Direct Synthesis of Highly Substituted π‐Rich Aromatic Heterocycles from Oxetanes

The ubiquitous use of π‐rich five‐membered heterocycles has driven the development of new methods for their synthesis for more than a century. Here, we disclose a general and reliable reaction manifold for the construction of highly substituted heterocycles through a facile Lewis‐acid‐catalyzed oxetane rearrangement. Notably, this methodology employs a keto‐oxetane motif as a 1,4‐dicarbonyl surrogate, which can be synthesized using robust alkylation or alkenylation reactions, and thus obviates the need to access 1,4‐dicarbonyl compounds via umpoled starting materials. We harnessed this reactivity to generate a broad range of substituted furans and pyrroles, and extended this methodology to produce benzo‐fused versions thereof.     

Highly Regio‐ and Stereoselective Intermolecular Seleno‐ and Thioamination of Alkynes

By using N‐fluorobenzenesulfonimide as both the oxidant and the amination reagent, we have realized the first example of the intermolecular chalcogenative amination of alkynes, which grants facile, highly regio‐ and stereoselective access to chalcogenated enamides. The reaction features mild conditions, high yields and selectivities, remarkably broad substrate scope, and excellent functional group tolerance. Mechanistic studies indicate the in situ generated chalcogen imidates to be the actual reactive species, which in turn, has clarified the mechanism of related transformations. These reactions represent significant additions to the development of the highly selective amino bisfunctionalization of alkynes.     

Stereoselective Solid‐State Synthesis of Substituted Cyclobutanes Assisted by Pseudorotaxane‐like MOFs

Regioselective photodimerization of trans‐4‐styrylpyridine (4‐spy) derivatives is performed using pseudorotaxane‐like Zn‐based metal organic frameworks MOFs as templates. The formation of rctt‐HT (head‐to‐tail) dimers is achieved by confining pairs of coordinated 4‐spy derivative ligands within hexagonal windows and then irradiating them with UV light. It is also possible to achieve a photodimerization reaction where two different substituted 4‐spy ligands are included in such a MOF material. The ether bond formation is employed to protect the sensitive ‐OH group of HO‐spy and the methyl group of CH₃O‐spy is subsequently removed after the formation of cyclobutane derivative in the CH₃O‐spy‐based MOF. Introducing substituents at the 2‐ or 3‐position of the phenyl group of 4‐spy does not significantly affect the rate of the dimerization process except in the case of the strongly electron‐withdrawing nitro group where the rate is significantly decreased. These results are in striking contrast to the mixtures of photoproducts and low yields obtained by untemplated photodimerization in organic solvents.     

Facile Method for 1,3‐Dipolar Cycloaddition Reaction of Azomethine Ylides: Highly Stereoselective Synthesis of Substituted Pyrrolidine Derivatives

The substituted pyrolidine derivatives with high stereoselectivity were obtained through cycloaddition reaction in the presence of a Lewis acid namely diethylzinc by solvent‐free grinding method.     

Novel Highly Energetic Pyrazoles: N‐Trinitromethyl‐Substituted Nitropyrazoles

A new family of energetic compounds, nitropyrazoles bearing a trinitromethyl moiety at the nitrogen atom of the heterocycle, was designed. The desirable high‐energy dense oxidizers 3,4‐dinitro‐ and 3,5‐dinitro‐1‐(trinitromethyl)pyrazoles were synthesized in good yields by destructive nitration of the corresponding 1‐acetonylpyrazoles. All of the prepared compounds were fully characterized by multinuclear NMR and IR spectroscopy, as well as by elemental analysis. Single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction studies show remarkably high density. Impact sensitivity tests and thermal stability measurements were also performed. All of the pyrazoles possess positive calculated heats of formation and exhibit promising energetic performance that is the range of 1,3,5‐trinitroperhydro‐1,3,5‐triazine and pentaerythritol tetranitrate. The new pyrazoles exhibit positive oxygen balance and are promising candidates for new environmentally benign energetic materials.     

Stereoselective Synthesis of Highly Substituted Tetrahydrofurans through Diverted Carbene OH Insertion Reaction

Copper‐ or rhodium‐catalyzed reactions of diazocarbonyl compounds with β‐hydroxyketones give highly substituted tetrahydrofurans with excellent diastereoselectivity. Under mild conditions, the single‐step process starts as a carbene O? H insertion reaction, but is diverted by an intramolecular aldol reaction.