失配的Lewis对:非金属催化氢化的新策略

“失配的Lewis对”(Frustrated Lewis Pairs,FLPs)作为有机化学领域的新概念,在非金属活化H2,CO2和NH3等小分子方面的研究和应用格外引人注目.以“失配的Lewis对”为催化剂,直接以氢气作为氢源,非金属催化氢化还原醛、烯胺、亚胺、腈和二氧化碳等获得了很好的结果.手性“失配的Lewis对”(Chiral Frustrated Lewis Pairs,Chiral FLPs)在不对称催化氢化还原亚胺的反应中也呈现出较高的光学选择性,产物胺的对映体过量最高达83％ ee.综述了近几年“失配的Lewis对”在非金属催化氢化研究领域的进展情况.     

Facile Protocol for Catalytic Frustrated Lewis Pair Hydrogenation and Reductive Deoxygenation of Ketones and Aldehydes

A series of ketones and aldehydes are reduced in toluene under H₂ in the presence of 5 mol % B(C₆F₅)₃ and either cyclodextrin or molecular sieves affording a facile metal‐free protocol for reduction to alcohols. Similar treatment of aryl ketones resulted in metal‐free deoxygenation yielding aromatic hydrocarbons.     

Metal‐Free Hydrogenation Catalyzed by an Air‐Stable Borane: Use of Solvent as a Frustrated Lewis Base

In recent years ‘frustrated Lewis pairs’ (FLPs) have been shown to be effective metal‐free catalysts for the hydrogenation of many unsaturated substrates. Even so, limited functional‐group tolerance restricts the range of solvents in which FLP‐mediated reactions can be performed, with all FLP‐mediated hydrogenations reported to date carried out in non‐donor hydrocarbon or chlorinated solvents. Herein we report that the bulky Lewis acids B(C₆Cl₅)_x(C₆F₅)_3?x (x=0–3) are capable of heterolytic H₂ activation in the strong‐donor solvent THF, in the absence of any additional Lewis base. This allows metal‐free catalytic hydrogenations to be performed in donor solvent media under mild conditions; these systems are particularly effective for the hydrogenation of weakly basic substrates, including the first examples of metal‐free catalytic hydrogenation of furan heterocycles. The air‐stability of the most effective borane, B(C₆Cl₅)(C₆F₅)₂, makes this a practically simple reaction method.     

Metal‐Free Hydrogenation of Unsaturated Hydrocarbons Employing Molecular Hydrogen

The metal‐free activation of hydrogen by frustrated Lewis pairs (FLPs) is a valuable method for the hydrogenation of polarized unsaturated molecules ranging from imines, enamines, and silyl enol ethers to heterocycles. However, one of the most important applications of hydrogenation technology is the conversion of unsaturated hydrocarbons into alkanes or alkenes. Despite the fast development of the FLP chemistry, such reactions proved as highly challenging. This Minireview provides an overview of the basic concepts of FLP chemistry, the challenge in the hydrogenation of unsaturated hydrocarbons, and first solutions to this central transformation.     

Metal‐Free Dihydrogen Oxidation by a Borenium Cation: A Combined Electrochemical/Frustrated Lewis Pair Approach

In order to use H₂ as a clean source of electricity, prohibitively rare and expensive precious metal electrocatalysts, such as Pt, are often used to overcome the large oxidative voltage required to convert H₂ into 2 H⁺ and 2 e^?. Herein, we report a metal‐free approach to catalyze the oxidation of H₂ by combining the ability of frustrated Lewis pairs (FLPs) to heterolytically cleave H₂ with the in situ electrochemical oxidation of the resulting borohydride. The use of the NHC‐stabilized borenium cation [(IiPr₂)(BC₈H₁₄)]⁺ (IiPr₂=C₃H₂(NiPr)₂, NHC=N‐heterocyclic carbene) as the Lewis acidic component of the FLP is shown to decrease the voltage required for H₂ oxidation by 910 mV at inexpensive carbon electrodes, a significant energy saving equivalent to 175.6 kJ mol^?1. The NHC–borenium Lewis acid also offers improved catalyst recyclability and chemical stability compared to B(C₆F₅)₃, the paradigm Lewis acid originally used to pioneer our combined electrochemical/frustrated Lewis pair approach.     

Electrophilic Fluorophosphonium Cations in Frustrated Lewis Pair Hydrogen Activation and Catalytic Hydrogenation of Olefins

The combination of phosphorus(V)‐based Lewis acids with diaryl amines and diaryl silylamines promotes reversible activation of dihydrogen and can be further exploited in metal‐free catalytic olefin hydrogenation. Combined experimental and density functional theory (DFT) studies suggest a frustrated Lewis pair type activation mechanism.