Ionic liquid-promoted, highly regioselective Heck arylation of electron-rich olefins by aryl halides

Palladium-catalyzed regioselective Heck arylation of the electron-rich olefins, vinyl ethers 1a-d, enamides 1e-g, and allyltrimethylsilane 1h, has been accomplished in imidazolium ionic liquids with a wide range of aryl bromides and iodides instead of the commonly used, but commercially unavailable and expensive, aryl triflates. The reaction proceeded with high efficiency and remarkable regioselectivity without the need for costly or toxic halide scavengers, leading exclusively to substitution by aryl groups of diverse electronic and steric properties at the olefinic carbon alpha to the heteroatom of 1a-g and beta to the heteroatom of 1h. In contrast, the arylation reaction in molecular solvents led to mixtures of regioisomers under similar conditions. Several lines of evidence point to the unique regiocontrol stemming from the ionic environment provided by the ionic liquid that alters the reaction pathway. The chemistry provides a simple, effective method for preparing branched, arylated olefins and contributes to the extension of Heck reaction to a wider range of substrates.     

Pd-mBDPP-catalyzed regioselective internal arylation of electron-rich olefins by aryl halides

meso-2,4-Bis(diphenylphosphino)pentane (mBDPP) has proved to be an effective regiocontrolling ligand for palladium-catalyzed internal arylation by aryl bromides of electron-rich olefins in a common solvent DMSO with no need for any halide scavengers. The arylation of the benchmark electron-rich olefin butyl vinyl ether took place smoothly to afford exclusively alpha-arylated product with high isolated yields. The better performance of mBDPP, compared with that of the commonly used DPPP [1,3-bis(diphenylphosphino)propane], highlights the important but subtle effect of ligand on the regioselectivity of the Heck arylation reactions.     

Palladium-catalyzed highly regioselective Heck reaction of aryl nonaflates with electron-rich olefins

Highly efficient palladium-catalyzed Heck coupling of aryl nonaflates with electron-rich vinyl ethers, and enamides is described. These reactions afforded exclusively the branched products in good yields. The results indicated that aryl nonaflates are effective alternative to the frequently employed aryl triflates.     

Palladium-catalyzed highly regioselective and stereoselective arylation of electron-rich allylamines with aryl bromides

A palladium-catalyzed, highly efficient Heck arylation of electron-rich N,N-diprotected allylamine derivatives with a wide range of aryl bromides under ligand-free conditions has been developed. In the presence of Pd(OAc)₂ and an appropriate additive, the reaction proceeds with excellent regioselectivity and stereoselectivity, leading exclusively to the γ-arylated (E)-allylamine products in good to excellent yields. It was found that the choice of solvent, olefin, additive and temperature has an important influence on the reaction. Worthy of note is that good results were observed only when using N,N-diprotected allylamines containing carbamate moiety, and the steric properties of allylamines also have important impacts on the regiocontrol. The use of TEMPO (2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-1-piperidinyloxy) or HQ (hydroquinone) as the additive is also crucial for securing a faster reaction rate. This method provides a straightforward approach for the efficient synthesis of various γ-arylated, linear (E)-allylamines.     

Highly regioselective Heck reactions of heteroaryl halides with electron-rich olefins in ionic liquid

Palladium-catalyzed Heck reactions of the heteroaryl halides, halopyridines, bromoquinoline and bromothiophenes, with the electron-rich olefins vinyl ethers and allyl alcohol were shown to give essentially only the branched olefins in an imidazolium ionic liquid, whereas in molecular solvents a mixture of regioisomers was formed. The method obviates the need for aryl triflates and stoichiometric inorganic salt additives, providing an easy entry to functionalized heteroaromatics incorporating acetyl and 2-allyl alcohol functionalities.     

Palladium-catalyzed regioselective Heck arylation of electron-rich olefins in a molecular solvent-ionic liquid cocktail

We have recently established that highly regioselective Heck arylation of electron-rich olefins can be accomplished with aryl halides without using any halide scavengers in imidazolium ionic liquid solvents. The results presented in this paper show that the benchmark electron-rich olefins vinyl ethers can be readily arylated by aryl bromides in a molecular solvent-ionic liquid cocktail with no compromise on regioselectivity. By introducing a small amount of 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate ([bmim][BF₄]) to DMSO, the arylation reactions of the vinyl ethers 1a-d by the bromides 2a-j took place to afford essentially only the α arylated products. The enamide 1e underwent similar regioselective arylation in the solvent cocktail. In the absence of the ionic liquid, lower regioselectivities were observed. In comparison with the chemistry we have reported so far, the current method reduces considerably the reliance on the volume of ionic liquids used, providing a simpler and more practical synthetic pathway for preparing arylated vinyl ethers and aryl methyl ketones.     

Hydrogen-bond-directed catalysis: faster, regioselective and cleaner Heck arylation of electron-rich olefins in alcohols

A general method for the regioselective Heck reaction of electron-rich olefins is presented. Fast, highly regioselective Pd-catalysed alpha-arylation of electron-rich olefins, vinyl ethers (1 a-d), hydroxyl vinyl ethers (1 e, f), enamides (1 g, h) and a substituted vinyl ether (1i) has been accomplished with a diverse range of aryl bromides (2 a-r), for the first time, in cheap, green and easily available alcohols with no need for any halide scavengers or salt additives. The reaction proceeds with high efficiency, leading exclusively to the alpha-products, in 2-propanol and particularly in ethylene glycol. In the latter, the arylation can be catalysed at a palladium loading of 0.1 mol% and finish in as short a time as 0.5 h. The remarkable performance of the alcohol solvents in promoting alpha regiocontrol is attributed to their hydrogen-bond-donating capability, which is believed to facilitate the dissociation of halide anions from PdII, and hence, the generation of a key ionic PdII-olefin intermediate responsible for the alpha product. This belief is further strengthened by the study of a benchmark arylation reaction in 21 different solvents. The study revealed that exclusive alpha-regioselective arylation takes place in almost all of the protic solvents, and there is a rough correlation between the alpha-arylation rates and the solvent parameter E(T)N. The method is simpler, cleaner and more general than those established thus far.     

Palladium-catalyzed arylation of electron-rich heterocycles with aryl chlorides

[reaction: see text] Palladium-catalyzed C-H activation: cheap aryl chlorides can now be used for the arylation of a wide variety of electron-rich heterocycles. The key to the success of this reaction is the use of a bulky, electron-rich phosphine ligand. No copper additives are needed.     

Direct arylation of azine N-oxides with aryl triflates

Palladium catalyzed direct arylation of azine N-oxides using aryl triflates to afford the corresponding 2-aryl azine N-oxides is described. The reaction is carried out with a range of both N-oxides and aryl triflates. The arylation can be carried out in sequence to yield differentially diarylated products. The regioselectivity and scope of 3-substituted azine N-oxides are investigated. The method is applied to the synthesis of a compound that exhibits antimalarial and antimicrobial activities.     

Highly regioselective internal heck arylation of hydroxyalkyl vinyl ethers by aryl halides in water

Highly regioselective and fast Pd(0)-catalyzed internal alpha-arylation of ethylene glycol vinyl ether with aryl halides was shown to be possible in water without the need for any halide scavengers or ionic liquid additives. This presents, to our knowledge, the first case of water being utilized in the selective arylation of electron-rich olefins. Resulting alpha-products were hydrolyzed and isolated as corresponding acetophenones in good to excellent yields when using aryl bromides and with good to moderate yields in the case of aryl iodides. Microwave irradiation was shown to be beneficial in activation of aryl chlorides toward the internal Heck arylation. The scope of the protocol was further increased to include different hydroxyalkyl vinyl ethers, these all giving selectively only branched alpha-products. Finally, the active role of the hydroxy group in directing the regioselectivity toward internal arylation of electron-rich olefins, even in nonpolar toluene, was revealed.     

Transition-metal-free highly chemo- and regioselective arylation of unactivated arenes with aryl halides over recyclable heterogeneous catalysts

A novel heterogeneous catalysis system using metal-organic frameworks as catalyst demonstrated excellent chemo- and regioselectivity for the direct arylation of unactivated arenes with aryl iodides/bromides without the assistance of any transition metals.     

Tetraphosphine/palladium-catalyzed Heck reactions of aryl halides with disubstituted alkenes

cis,cis,cis-1,2,3,4-Tetrakis(diphenylphosphinomethyl)cyclopentane/[PdCl(C₃H₅)]₂ efficiently catalyses the Heck reaction of disubstituted alkenes such as methyl crotonate, ethyl cinnamate, methyl methacrylate or α-methylstyrene with a variety of aryl halides. In the presence of 1,2-disubstituted alkenes the stereoselectivities of the reactions strongly depend on the substituents of the alkenes. Selectivities up to 97% in favor of E-isomers can be obtained for the addition to methyl crotonate. With the 1,1-disubstituted alkenes methyl methacrylate or α-methylstyrene mixtures of products are obtained.     

Mild copper-catalyzed N-arylation of azaheterocycles with aryl halides

A highly efficient copper(I)-catalyzed N-arylation of azaheterocycles with various aryl halides is reported. The N-arylation reaction can be carried out using as low as 0.5 mol % of (Cu(I)OTf)₂·PhH and 1.0 mol % of 4,7-dichloro-1,10-phenanthroline as the ligand. Furthermore, cheap and stable copper precursors like Cu(I)I and Cu(II)(OAc)₂·H₂O and the cheap and mild base K₂CO₃ can be used.     

Palladium-catalyzed direct arylation of nitro-substituted aromatics with aryl halides

Direct arylation reactions of nitrobenzenes and aryl halides occur in good yield and high ortho regioselectivity. These reactions can be performed on gram scale with as few as 3 equiv of the nitro arene relative to the aryl halide. The synthetic utility of this method is demonstrated via rapid synthesis of a Boscalid intermediate.     

Palladium-catalyzed benzylic direct arylation of benzyl sulfones with aryl halides

An effective palladium catalyst system for the direct arylation of benzyl sulfones with aryl halides has been developed. The catalytic reaction provides a facile route to diarylmethyl sulfones. The products can be transformed further via desulfonylative functionalization mediated by aluminum compounds.     

Hydrogen-bonding-promoted oxidative addition and regioselective arylation of olefins with aryl chlorides

The first, general, and highly efficient catalytic system that allows a wide range of activated and unactivated aryl chlorides to couple regioselectively with olefins has been developed. The Heck arylation reaction is likely to be controlled by the oxidative addition of ArCl to Pd(0). Hence, an electron-rich diphosphine, 4-MeO-dppp, was introduced to facilitate the catalysis. Solvent choice is critical, however; only sluggish arylation is observed in DMF or DMSO, whereas the reaction proceeds well in ethylene glycol at 0.1-1 mol % catalyst loadings, displaying excellent regioselectivity. Mechanistic evidence supports that the arylation is turnover-limited by the oxidative addition step and, most importantly, that the oxidative addition is accelerated by ethylene glycol, most likely via hydrogen bonding to the chloride at the transition state as shown by DFT calculations. Ethylene glycol thus plays a double role in the arylation, facilitating oxidative addition and promoting the subsequent dissociation of chloride from Pd(II) to give a cationic Pd(II)-olefin species, which is key to the regioselectivity observed.     

Free porphyrin catalyzed direct C-H arylation of benzene with aryl halides

A general procedure for free porphyrin catalyzed direct C-H arylation of benzene was demonstrated. This air tolerant, transition-metal-free process provides a promising system for cheap and efficient synthesis of biaryls in a user-friendly approach.     

Palladium-catalyzed direct arylation of aryl(azaaryl)methanes with aryl halides providing triarylmethanes

Direct arylation of aryl(azaaryl)methanes with aryl halides takes place at the benzylic position in the presence of a hydroxide base under palladium catalysis to yield triarylmethanes.     

Reactions of vinyltributylgermanes and aryl halides under Heck conditions

We describe the palladium-mediated reaction of vinyltributylgermanes with aryl halides under Heck conditions. Depending on their degree of substitution, (E)-vinyltributylgermanes preferentially afford either the cine or Z-alkenyl coupled products in moderate yields. Substituents at the allylic position, especially oxygen, impact regio- and stereoselectivity.