A Fluxional Copper Acetylide Cluster in CuAAC Catalysis

A molecularly defined copper acetylide cluster with ancillary N‐heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligands was prepared under acidic reaction conditions. This cluster is the first molecular copper acetylide complex that features high activity in copper‐catalyzed azide–alkyne cycloadditions (CuAAC) with added acetic acid even at ?5 °C. Ethyl propiolate protonates the acetate ligands of the dinuclear precursor complex to release acetic acid and replaces one out of four ancillary ligands. Two copper(I) ions are thereby liberated to form the core of a yellow dicationic C₂‐symmetric hexa‐NHC octacopper hexaacetylide cluster. Coalescence phenomena in low‐temperature NMR experiments reveal fluxionality that leads to the facile interconversion of all of the NHC and acetylide positions. Kinetic investigations provide insight into the influence of copper acetylide coordination modes and the acetic acid on catalytic activity. The interdependence of “click” activity and copper acetylide aggregation beyond dinuclear intermediates adds a new dimension of complexity to our mechanistic understanding of the CuAAC reaction.     

Experimental Evidence for the Involvement of Dinuclear Alkynylcopper(I) Complexes in Alkyne–Azide Chemistry

Dinuclear alkynylcopper(I) ladderane complexes are prepared by a robust and simple protocol involving the reduction of Cu₂(OH)₃OAc or Cu(OAc)₂ by easily oxidised alcohols in the presence of terminal alkynes; they function as efficient catalysts in copper‐catalysed alkyne–azide cycloaddition reactions as predicted by the Ahlquist–Fokin calculations. The same copper(I) catalysts are formed during reactions by using the Sharpless–Fokin protocol. The experimental results also provide evidence that sodium ascorbate functions as a base to deprotonate terminal alkynes and additionally give a convincing alternative explanation for the fact that the Cu^I‐catalysed reactions of certain 1,3‐diazides with phenylacetylene give bis(triazoles) as the major products. The same dinuclear alkynylcopper(I) complexes also function as catalysts in cycloaddition reactions of azides with 1‐iodoalkynes.     

Enantioselective Copper‐Catalyzed Azide–Alkyne Click Cycloaddition to Desymmetrization of Maleimide‐Based Bis(alkynes)

A copper catalyst system derived from TaoPhos and CuF₂ was used successfully for catalytic asymmetric Huisgen [3+2] cycloaddition of azides and alkynes to give optically pure products containing succinimide‐ and triazole‐substituted quaternary carbon stereogenic centers. The desired products were obtained in good yields (60–80 %) and 85:15 to >99:1 enantiomeric ratio (e.r.) in this click cycloaddition reaction.     

Carbon‐Supported Copper Nanomaterials: Recyclable Catalysts for Huisgen [3+2] Cycloaddition Reactions

Highly disperse copper nanoparticles immobilized on carbon nanomaterials (CNMs; graphene/carbon nanotubes) were prepared and used as a recyclable and reusable catalyst to achieve Cu^I‐catalyzed [3+2] cycloaddition click chemistry. Carbon nanomaterials with immobilized N‐heterocyclic carbene (NHC)‐Cu complexes prepared from an imidazolium‐based carbene and Cu^I show excellent stability including high efficiency at low catalyst loading. The catalytic performance evaluated in solution and in bulk shows that both types of Cu‐CNMs can function as an effective recyclable catalysts (more than 10 cycles) for click reactions without decomposition and the use of external additives.     

A Sequential Homologation of Alkynes and Aldehydes for Chain Elongation with Optional 13C‐Labeling

Terminal alkynes (RCCH) are homologated by a sequence of ruthenium‐catalyzed anti‐Markovnikov hydration of alkyne to aldehyde (RCH₂CHO), followed by Bestmann–Ohira alkynylation of aldehyde to chain‐elongated alkyne (RCH₂CCH). Inverting the sequence by starting from aldehyde brings about the reciprocal homologation of aldehydes instead. The use of ¹³C‐labeled Bestmann–Ohira reagent (dimethyl ((1‐¹³C)‐1‐diazo‐2‐oxopropyl)phosphonate) for alkynylation provides straightforward access to singly or, through additional homologation, multiply ¹³C‐labeled alkynes. The labeled alkynes serve as synthetic platform for accessing a multitude of specifically ¹³C‐labeled products. Terminal alkynes with one or two ¹³C‐labels in the alkyne unit have been submitted to alkyne–azide click reactions; the copper‐catalyzed version (CuAAC) was found to display a regioselectivity of >50 000:1 for the 1,4‐ over the 1,5‐triazine isomer, as shown analytically by ¹³C NMR spectroscopy.     

(NHC)Copper(I)-catalyzed [3+2] cycloaddition of azides and mono- or disubstituted alkynes

A versatile and highly efficient catalyst for the Huisgen cycloaddition reaction has been developed. Previously isolated or in situ generated azides yielded 1,2,3-triazoles with differently substituted alkynes in the presence of a [(NHC)CuBr] complex (NHC = N-heterocyclic carbene). Extremely high reaction rates and excellent yields were obtained in all cases. This catalytic system fulfils the requirements of "click chemistry" with its mild and convenient conditions, notably in water or solvent free reactions and simple isolation with no purification step. Furthermore, for the first time, an internal alkyne was successfully used in this copper-catalyzed cycloaddition reaction. DFT calculations on this particular system allowed for the proposition of a new mechanistic pathway for disubstituted alkynes.     

Thiol–Yne Click Reactions on Alkynyl–Dopamine‐Modified Reduced Graphene Oxide

The large‐scale preparation of graphene is of great importance due to its potential applications in various fields. We report herein a simple method for the simultaneous exfoliation and reduction of graphene oxide (GO) to reduced GO (rGO) by using alkynyl‐terminated dopamine as the reducing agent. The reaction was performed under mild conditions to yield rGO functionalized with the dopamine derivative. The chemical reactivity of the alkynyl function was demonstrated by post‐functionalization with two thiolated precursors, namely 6‐(ferrocenyl)hexanethiol and 1H,1H,2H,2H‐perfluorodecanethiol. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, UV/Vis spectrophotometry, Raman spectroscopy, conductivity measurements, and cyclic voltammetry were used to characterize the resulting surfaces.     

A Highly Active and Magnetically Recoverable Tris(triazolyl)–CuI Catalyst for Alkyne–Azide Cycloaddition Reactions

Nanoparticle‐supported tris(triazolyl)–CuBr, with a diameter of approximately 25 nm measured by TEM spectroscopy, has been easily prepared, and its catalytic activity was evaluated in the copper‐catalyzed azide–alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC) reaction. In initial experiments, 0.5 mol % loading successfully promoted the CuAAC reaction between benzyl azide and phenylacetylene, in water at room temperature (25 °C). During this process, the iron oxide nanoparticle‐supported tris(triazolyl)–CuBr displayed good monodispersity, excellent recoverability, and outstanding reusability. Indeed, it was simply collected and separated from the reaction medium by using an external magnet, then used for another five catalytic cycles without significant loss of catalytic activity. Inductively coupled plasma (ICP) analysis for the first cycle revealed that the amount of copper leached from the catalyst into the reaction medium is negligible (1.5 ppm). The substrate scope has been examined, and it was found that the procedure can be successfully extended to various organic azides and alkynes and can also be applied to the one‐pot synthesis of triazoles, through a cascade reaction involving benzyl bromides, alkynes, and sodium azide. In addition, the catalyst was shown to be an efficient CuAAC catalyst for the synthesis of allyl‐ and TEG‐ended (TEG=triethylene glycol) 27‐branch dendrimers.     

基于无铜点击反应的水凝胶合成

水凝胶是一种交联高分子材料, 在药物传输、传感器技术、组织工程中发挥重要作用。通过高效率和高精确度的点击反应合成水凝胶, 具有快速、模块化以及副反应少等优点, 并且能够得到近乎理想的网络结构。Cu（Ⅰ） 催化的叠氮-炔之间的环加成 （CuAAC） 反应作为点击反应的典型代表, 已广泛应用于水凝胶的制备。但由于该反应在制备水凝胶的过程中使用了Cu（Ⅰ） 催化剂, 导致产品易被金属铜盐污染, 从而使该反应在其制备领域受到限制。基于此, 无铜点击反应,如巯基-烯/炔反应、呋喃/蒽-马来酰亚胺 （MI） 修饰的 Diels-Alder 环加成 （D-A） 反应以及环张力促进的叠氮-炔环加成反应 （SPAAC） 已经被应用到水凝胶的制备以及功能化方面。本文就近年来上述无铜点击反应在水凝胶合成及功能化方面的应用进行综述, 并对其发展趋势进行展望。     

Copper(I)‐Catalyzed Cycloaddition of Azides to Multiple Alkynes: A Selectivity Study Using a Calixarene Framework

Copper(I)‐catalyzed addition of limited amounts of azides to multiple alkynes, which led to statistical mixtures of triazole/acetylene derivatives or, in other cases, resulted in preferred formation of multiple triazoles, was studied at pre‐organizable calixarene platforms bearing up to four propargyl groups. Depending on calixarene structures and reaction conditions, the unprecedented specific or selective formation of exhaustively triazolated calixarenes or a complete loss of the selectivity were observed. Both autocatalytic copper activation and a local copper(I) concentration increase due to copper–triazole complexation were thoroughly studied as the most expected reasons for the selectivity and both were disproved. Mixed triazolated/propargylated calixarenes and their copper(I) complexes proved not to be involved in the cascade‐like process that was modeled to be driven by an intramolecular transfer of two copper(I) ions from a just‐formed binuclear copper intermediate to the adjacent acetylene unit.     

Mechanical Reversibility of Strain‐Promoted Azide–Alkyne Cycloaddition Reactions

Mechanophores, that is, molecules that show a defined response to force, are crucial building blocks of mechanoresponsive materials. The possibility of mechanically induced cycloreversion for a series of triazoles formed via strain‐promoted azide–alkyne cycloaddition reactions was investigated by density functional theory calculations, and these triazoles were compared to the 1,4‐ and 1,5‐regioisomers formed in the reaction of an azide with a terminal alkyne. We show that cycloreversion is in principal possible and that the pulling geometry is the most important parameter that determines the probability of cycloreversion. We further compared triazole stability to the mechanical stability of polymers that are frequently used as force transducers in mechanochemical experiments and identified DIBAC (azadibenzylcyclooctyne) as a promising mechanophore for future applications.     

Copper(I) Zeolites as Heterogeneous and Ligand‐Free Catalysts: [3+2] Cycloaddition of Azomethine Imines

Clicking in zeolites : Copper(I)‐exchanged zeolites proved to be practical and efficient catalysts for the cycloaddition of azomethine imines with alkynes, providing a convenient access to N,N‐bicyclic pyrazolidinone derivatives (see scheme). With high regioselectivity, 100 % atom economy, and convenient product isolation, this heterogeneously catalyzed version of the Dorn cycloaddition corresponds to click‐chemistry criteria.

     

Synthesis and Thermoreversible Gelation Properties of Main‐Chain Poly(pyridine‐2,6‐dicarboxamide‐triazole)s

A series of main‐chain poly(amide‐triazole)s were prepared by copper(I)‐catalyzed alkyne–azide AABB‐type copolymerizatons between five structurally similar diacetylenes 1 – 5 with the same diazide 6 . The acetylene units in monomers 1 – 5 possessed different degrees of conformational flexibility due to the different number of intramolecular hydrogen bonds built inside the monomer architecture. Our study showed that the conformational freedom of the monomer had a profound effect on the polymerization efficiency and the thermoreversible gelation properties of the resulting copolymers. Among all five diacetylene monomers, only the one, that is, 1 ‐Py(NH)₂ which possesses the pyridine‐2,6‐dicarboxamide unit with two built‐in intramolecular H bonds could produce the corresponding poly(amide‐triazole) Poly‐(PyNH)₂ with a significantly higher degree of polymerization (DP) than other monomers with a lesser number of intramolecular H bonds. In addition, it was found that only this polymer exhibited excellent thermoreversible gelation ability in aromatic solvents. A self‐assembling model of the organogelating polymer Poly‐(PyNH)₂ was proposed based on FTIR spectroscopy, XRD, and SEM analyses, in which H bonding, π–π aromatic stacking, hydrophobic interactions, and the structural rigidity of the polymer backbone were identified as the main driving forces for the polymer self‐assembly process.     

"Click chemistry" in zeolites: copper(I) zeolites as new heterogeneous and ligand-free catalysts for the Huisgen [3+2] cycloaddition

For the first time, copper(I)-exchanged zeolites were developed as catalysts in organic synthesis. These solid materials proved to be versatile and efficient heterogeneous, ligand-free catalytic systems for the Huisgen [3+2] cycloaddition. These cheap and easy-to-prepare catalysts exhibited a wide scope and compatibility with functional groups. They are very simple to use, easy to remove (by filtration), and are recyclable (up to three times without loss of activity). Investigations with deuterated alkynes and deuterated zeolites proved that this Cu(I)-zeolite-catalyzed "click" reaction exhibited a mechanism different from that reported for the Meldal-Sharpless version.