Copper(II) tetrafluoroborate as an extremely efficient catalyst for 1,3-dithiolane/dithiane formation from carbonyl compounds under solvent-free conditions at room temperature

Copper(II) tetrafluoroborate hydrate is a new and extremely efficient catalyst for 1,3-dithiolane/dithiane formation from aromatic, heteroaromatic and aliphatic aldehydes and cyclic saturated ketones in 1-5 min under solvent-free conditions at room temperature. The reaction is compatible with other functionalities such as ether, ester, hydroxyl, halide, nitro and cyano groups and exhibits excellent chemoselectivity. α,β-Unsaturated aldehydes/ketones lead to selective formation of 1,3-dithiolanes instead of Michael addition products. For substrates bearing an aldehyde and a ketone carbonyl group, chemoselective dithiolane formation takes place with the aldehyde.     

Copper(II) tetrafluoroborate as a novel and highly efficient catalyst for acetal formation

Commercially available copper(II) tetrafluoroborate hydrate has been found to be a highly efficient catalyst for dimethyl/diethyl acetal formation in high yields from aldehydes and ketones by reaction with trimethyl/triethyl orthoformate at room temperature and in short period. Acetalisation was carried out under solvent-free conditions with electrophilic aldehydes/ketones. For weakly electrophilic aldehydes/ketones (e.g., benzaldehyde, cinnamaldehyde and acetophenone) and for aldehydes having a substituent that can coordinate with the catalyst, the corresponding alcohol was used as solvent.     

Hydrogen bond catalyzed chemoselective N-tert-butoxycarbonylation of amines

A novel, chemoselective mono-N-Boc protection of various structurally diverse amines with di-tert-butoxypyrocarbonate (Boc)₂O is described that relies on selective carbonyl activation by hydrogen bond formation. This mild, acid- and metal-free process requires only catalytic amounts of thiourea as hydrogen bond donor.     

Copper(II) tetrafluoroborate as a novel and highly efficient catalyst for Michael addition of mercaptans to α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds

Copper(II) tetrafluoroborate has been found to be a new and highly efficient catalyst for Michael addition of thiols to α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds under solvent-free conditions and in H₂O at room temperature. The reactions are very fast and are completed in 2 min to 1 h affording high yields. The rate of thiol addition was dependent on the steric hindrance at the β-carbon of the α,β-unsaturated carbonyl substrate. In the case of chalcones, the reactions are best carried out in MeOH as solvent.     

Facile N-tert-butoxycarbonylation of amines using La(NO3)3·6H2O as a mild and efficient catalyst under solvent-free conditions

Facile N-tert-butoxycarbonylation of amines is described by the treatment of various primary, secondary, benzylic and aryl amines with di-tert-butyl dicarbonate in the presence of catalytic amounts of La(NO₃)₃·6H₂O under solvent-free conditions at room temperature to afford N-tert-butylcarbamates in excellent yields.     

A very simple and highly efficient procedure for N-formylation of primary and secondary amines at room temperature under solvent-free conditions

N-Formylation of primary and secondary amines has efficiently been carried out at room temperature in excellent yields by using catalytic amount of sodium formate in formic acid under solvent-free conditions. The process is remarkably simple and environmentally benign.     

Copper(II) tetrafluoroborate-catalyzed ring-opening of epoxides by amines

Copper(II) tetrafluoroborate catalyzes efficiently the selective opening of epoxides by amines leading to the synthesis of β-amino alcohols. The reaction works well with aromatic and aliphatic amines in high yields under solvent-free conditions.     

Thioglycoluril as a highly efficient, recyclable and novel organocatalyst for N-Boc protection of amines

A simple and efficient protocol for the chemoselective mono-N-Boc protection of various structurally diverse amines with di-tert-butyl dicarbonate using thioglycoluril as the catalyst is described. The catalyst can be readily separated from the reaction products by simple filtration and recovered for reuse. No competitive side reactions, such as formation of isocyanate, urea, oxazolidinone, and N,N-di-Boc derivatives were observed.     

Chemoselective hydrolysis of tert-butyl esters in acetonitrile using molecular iodine as a mild and efficient catalyst

A simple, mild and efficient method for the hydrolysis of tert-butyl esters using molecular iodine as a catalyst is described. Acid labile protecting groups, such as N-Boc, OBn, OAc and double bonds, are compatible under the reaction conditions.     

Zinc oxide (ZnO) as a new, highly efficient, and reusable catalyst for acylation of alcohols, phenols and amines under solvent free conditions

Zinc oxide (ZnO) is a highly efficient catalyst for the acylation of a variety of alcohols, phenols and amines with acid chlorides or acid anhydrides under solvent free conditions. Primary, secondary, tertiary, allylic and benzylic alcohols, diols and phenols with electron donating or withdrawing substituents can be easily acylated in good to excellent yield.     

Zinc(II) perchlorate as a new and highly efficient catalyst for formation of aldehyde 1,1-diacetate at room temperature and under solvent-free conditions

Zinc(II) perchlorate efficiently catalysed the conversion of aromatic, heteroaromatic, and aliphatic aldehydes to 1,1-diacetates under solvent-free conditions at room temperature. It was compatible with other functional groups (e.g., ether, ester, nitro, and cyano) likely to interfere by complex formation with the catalyst. Other anhydrides such as isobutyric, pivalic, and benzoic anhydrides afforded the corresponding 1,1-dicarboxylates and established the generality. The reaction rate was influenced by the steric and electronic nature of the anhydride. The rate of 1,1-dicarboxylate formation was found to follow the order Ac₂O > (i-PrCO)₂O > (t-BuCO)₂O > (PhCO)₂O and no 1,1-dicarboxylate formation took place with (ClCH₂CO)₂O, and (F₃CO)₂O. During inter- and intra-molecular competition between a ketone and an aldehyde group with Ac₂O, 1,1-diacetate formation took place exclusively with the aldehyde group. An 88:12 selectivity was observed for 1,1-diacetate formation in favour of 1-naphthaldehyde during competition with 2-methoxy-1-naphthaldehyde.     

An efficient method for the conversion of aromatic and aliphatic nitriles to the corresponding N-tert-butyl amides: a modified Ritter reaction

Aromatic and aliphatic nitriles react with tert-butyl acetate in the presence of a catalytic amount of sulfuric acid to give the corresponding N-tert-butyl amides in excellent yields.     

An efficient and chemoselective Brønsted acidic ionic liquid-catalyzed N-Boc protection of amines

The first report of a Brønsted acidic ionic liquid, 1-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate [(HMIm)BF₄], catalyzed efficient and chemoselective N-Boc protection of various amines using (Boc)₂O is presented. Optically pure amino alcohols and amino acid esters were converted efficiently to their corresponding optically pure N-Boc derivatives. The reported method is mild, solvent-free and has the advantages of both homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis with high product yields, selectivity and ease of product separation.     

Silica-bonded N-propyl sulfamic acid as an efficient catalyst for the formylation and acetylation of alcohols and amines under heterogeneous conditions

A simple and efficient procedure for the preparation of silica-bonded N-propyl sulfamic acid (SBNPSA) by the reaction of 3-aminopropylsilica (1) and chlorosulfonic acid in chloroform is described. This solid acid is employed as a new catalyst for the formylation of alcohols and amines with ethyl formate under mild and heterogeneous conditions at room temperature with good to excellent yields. Also, SBNPSA catalyzed acetylation of various alcohols and amines with acetic anhydride at room temperature.     

Simple and efficient synthesis of 3-aminopropenones and 3-aminopropenoates catalyzed by copper(II) nitrate trihydrate under solvent-free conditions

A simple, efficient and environmentally begin method has been developed for the synthesis of 3-aminopropenones and 3-aminopropenoates through the reaction of 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds with amines in the presence of Cu(NO₃)₂ · 3H₂O under solvent-free conditions. Correspondence: Geng-Chen Li, School of Material Science and Engineering, Shijiazhuang Railway Institute, Shijiazhuang 050043, China.     

The highly efficient Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling reaction using cyclopalladated N-alkylferrocenylimine as a catalyst in aqueous medium at room temperature under ambient atmosphere

A series of N-alkyl-substituted cyclopalladated ferrocenylimines were used in palladium-catalyzed Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling reactions of aryl halides in room temperature and CH₃OH/H₂O media under aerobic conditions. As for the catalysts, the length of N-alkyl chains has no significant effect on the catalytic activity. Using 0.01 mol% of dimer 3a in the presence of K₂CO₃ as base offered excellent yields in the reaction of activated and non-activated aryl bromides with phenylboronic acid.     

Sonogashira reactions catalyzed by a new and efficient copper(I) catalyst incorporating N-benzyl DABCO chloride

A new and effective catalytic system using [N-benzyl DABCO]⁺[Cu₄Cl₅]⁻ was developed for the palladium-free Sonogashira cross-coupling reactions of phenylacetylene with a variety of aryl halides. In this homogeneous catalytic system, 1-benzyl-4-aza-1-azoniabicyclo[2.2.2]octane chloride, a quaternary ammonium salt containing a coordinating center, plays an important role and increases the efficiency of Cu(I) species during the reaction. A number of internal alkynes were produced in moderate to excellent yields, in short reaction times in DMF at 135 °C.     

Tethering of nickel(II) Schiff-base complex onto mesoporous silica: An efficient heterogeneous catalyst for epoxidation of olefins

A new hybrid catalyst has been prepared by tethering a nickel(II) Schiff-base complex via post-synthesis modification of mesoporous silica, MCM-41. The Schiff-base has been derived from salicylaldehyde and 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (3-APTES) which is chemically anchored on MCM-41 via silicon alkoxide route. The anchored Schiff-bases imposed a stable planar coordination geometry around the central nickel ions. The catalyst has been characterized by elemental analysis, FT-IR, UV-Vis, small angle X-ray diffraction (SAX) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) studies. The SAX and TEM measurement showed the mesoporosity of the catalyst. The activity of the catalyst has been assessed in the epoxidation of olefins using tert-butyl-hydroperoxide (tert-BuOOH) as oxidant in heterogeneous condition. Immobilized nickel catalyst was found to be catalytically more active and selective compared to the similar type of nickel(II) complex as well as Ni(NO₃)₂·6H₂O in homogeneous media. The catalyst can be recycled and reused several times without significant loss of activity.     

Syntheses and structures of zinc and tin(II) compounds with hemilabile N-silyl-tert-butylamido and N-silyl-p-tolylamido ligands that contain pendent tert-butoxy groups

Syntheses and solid-state structures of zinc and tin(II) compounds, containing the N-silyl-amide ligands (O^tBu)(NR)SiMe₂, R = ^tBu (L^tBu), or R = p-tolyl (L^pTol), are reported. The N-silyl amines were synthesized by modified published procedures from commercially available Me₂SiCl₂, ^tBuOH, and ^tBuNH₂, or p-Me-C₆H₄NH₂, respectively. Treatment of SnCl₂ with LiL^pTol furnished Sn(L^pTol)₂, which was X-ray structurally characterized and shown to contain two covalent Sn-N bonds and two asymmetrical O → Sn donor bonds. The single-crystal X-ray structure of Sn(L^tBu)₂ revealed a much more symmetrically-coordinated, pseudo-trigonal-bipyramidal tin atom. Aminolysis of diethylzinc with HL^pTol produced [EtZn(L^pTol)]₂, which crystallized as a centrosymmetric dimer, containing four-coordinate zinc atoms connected by bridging amides. Zinc dichloride, by contrast, reacted with two equivalents of LiL^tBu to produce the homoleptic, pseudo-spirocyclic Zn(L^tBu)₂.     

A mild and efficient chemoselective protection of amines as N-benzyloxycarbonyl derivatives in the presence of La(NO3)3·6H2O under solvent-free conditions

A facile and versatile method for the chemoselective N-benzyloxycarbonylation of amines has been developed by treatment with benzyloxycarbonyl chloride (Cbz-Cl) in the presence of lanthanum(III) nitrate hexahydrate under solvent-free conditions. The method is general for the preparation of N-Cbz derivatives of aliphatic (acyclic and cyclic) and aromatic amines.