Enzyme‐ and Ruthenium‐Catalyzed Enantioselective Transformation of α‐Allenic Alcohols into 2,3‐Dihydrofurans

An efficient one‐pot method for the enzyme‐ and ruthenium‐catalyzed enantioselective transformation of α‐allenic alcohols into 2,3‐dihydrofurans has been developed. The method involves an enzymatic kinetic resolution and a subsequent ruthenium‐catalyzed cycloisomerization, which provides 2,3‐dihydrofurans with excellent enantioselectivity (up to >99 % ee). A ruthenium carbene species was proposed as a key intermediate in the cycloisomerization.     

A Practical,Water‐Soluble,Ionic Scavenger for the Solution‐Phase Syntheses of Amides

A new ionic, water‐soluble scavenger for acyl chlorides, 1‐(2‐aminoethyl)pyridinium bromide ( 1 ), has been investigated. Compound 1 was used for the rapid and simple purification of a series of benzamides and sulfonamides (Table) obtained by solution‐phase synthesis from the corresponding amines (Scheme). The inexpensive scavenger, which can be prepared on large scale, was shown to readily ‘eliminate’ excess acyl chlorides (reagent) by simple aqueous extraction. The amides purified in this way were obtained in excellent yields and purities (Table), which makes 1 a versatile new reagent, especially for the combinatorial solution‐phase synthesis of amide libraries.     

Practical and Chemoselective Reduction of Acyl Chloride to Alcohol by Borohydride in Aqueous Dichloromethane

A simple methodology for the reduction of acid chlorides to their corresponding alcohols has been developed. Various carboxylic acids were converted to alcohols in excellent yields using NaBH₄-K₂CO₃ in a mixed solvent system of dichloromethane and water (1:1) in the presence of a phase-transfer catalyst at low temperature. The importance of the work is its simplicity, selectivity, excellent yield, and very short reaction time. This new reduction condition has proved to be an excellent chemoselective method for a range of acid chlorides in the presence of various functional groups.     

Ionene-Bound Borohydrides: Efficient, Selective, and Versatile Polymer-Supported Reducing Agents

Summary. Reduction of structurally different carbonyl compounds, such as aldehydes, ketones, α,β-unsaturated enals and enones, acid chlorides, and imines was accomplished efficiently using high capacity ionene based borohydride reagents. Aldehydes and imines were reduced to the corresponding alcohols and amines in excellent yields in methanol at ambient temperature while ketones and acid chlorides were reduced in iso-propanol and THF-MeOH at reflux. Chemoselective reduction of aldehydes over ketones was achieved successfully with these reagents. Complete regioselectivity was also observed in the reduction of α,β-unsaturated aldehydes and ketones.     

(2S,5S)-吡咯烷-2,5-二羧酸催化羟基丙酮的不对称Mannich反应

将(2S,5S)-吡咯烷-2,5-二羧酸用于催化羟基丙酮与苯胺和苯甲醛的直接不对称Mannich反应,以较好的收率(64~95%)和最高96% ee得到了syn-1,2-氨基醇化合物。     

Photocatalytic Reduction of Nitro Compounds Using TiO2 Photocatalyst by UV and Vis Dye-sensitized Systems

Nitro‐aromatic compounds can be photocatalytically reduced into the corresponding amine‐aromatic compounds using TiO₂ as a photocatalyst in the UV/TiO₂/holes scavenger and Vis/TiO₂/dye‐sensitized systems. In the UV/TiO₂/holes scavenger system, reaction substrate alcohols such as methanol could be used as the holes scavengers, and in the Vis/TiO₂/dye‐sensitized system, substrate alcohols could be oxidized to the corresponding aldehydes with high selectivity. When methanol was used as the holes scavengers and the illumination time was 6 h, 87.2% of p‐nitrotoluene could be photocatalytically reduced into p‐toluidine. In the Vis/TiO₂/dye‐sensitized system, the effect of aromatic alcohols for the photocatalytic reduction of nitrobenzene was better than that of other alcohols. At the same time, aromatic alcohols can be easily oxidized, and the production efficiencies of the corresponding aldehydes were higher than those of other alcohols. The possible reaction mechanisms were also proposed.     

A Highly Versatile Catalyst System for the Cross‐Coupling of Aryl Chlorides and Amines

The syntheses of 2‐(di‐tert‐butylphosphino)‐N,N‐dimethylaniline ( L1 , 71 %) and 2‐(di‐1‐adamantylphosphino)‐N,N‐dimethylaniline ( L2 , 74 %), and their application in Buchwald–Hartwig amination, are reported. In combination with [Pd(allyl)Cl]₂ or [Pd(cinnamyl)Cl]₂, these structurally simple and air‐stable P,N ligands enable the cross‐coupling of aryl and heteroaryl chlorides, including those bearing as substituents enolizable ketones, ethers, esters, carboxylic acids, phenols, alcohols, olefins, amides, and halogens, to a diverse range of amine and related substrates that includes primary alkyl‐ and arylamines, cyclic and acyclic secondary amines, N? H imines, hydrazones, lithium amide, and ammonia. In many cases, the reactions can be performed at low catalyst loadings (0.5–0.02 mol % Pd) with excellent functional group tolerance and chemoselectivity. Examples of cross‐coupling reactions involving 1,4‐bromochlorobenzene and iodobenzene are also reported. Under similar conditions, inferior catalytic performance was achieved when using Pd(OAc)₂, PdCl₂, [PdCl₂(cod)] (cod=1,5‐cyclooctadiene), [PdCl₂(MeCN)₂], or [Pd₂(dba)₃] (dba=dibenzylideneacetone) in combination with L1 or L2 , or by use of [Pd(allyl)Cl]₂ or [Pd(cinnamyl)Cl]₂ with variants of L1 and L2 bearing less basic or less sterically demanding substituents on phosphorus or lacking an ortho‐dimethylamino fragment. Given current limitations associated with established ligand classes with regard to maintaining high activity across the diverse possible range of C? N coupling applications, L1 and L2 represent unusually versatile ligand systems for the cross‐coupling of aryl chlorides and amines.     

Solid‐State Emissive Aroyl‐S,N‐Ketene Acetals with Tunable Aggregation‐Induced Emission Characteristics

N‐Benzyl aroyl‐S,N‐ketene acetals can be readily synthesized by condensation of aroyl chlorides and N‐benzyl 2‐methyl benzothiazolium salts in good to excellent yields, yielding a library of 35 chromophores with bright solid‐state emission and aggregation‐induced emission characteristics. Varying the substituent from electron‐donating to electron‐withdrawing enables the tuning of the solid‐state emission color from deep blue to red.     

Gas Phase Conversion of Carbon Tetrachloride to Alkyl Chlorides Catalyzed by Supported Ionic Liquids

An efficient way of converting carbon tetrachloride (CTC) to alkyl chlorides is reported, which uses the catalysts of ionic liquids supported on granular active carbon. The catalytic performance was evaluated in a temperature range of 120–200°C and atmospheric pressure for different ionic liquids, namely 1‐butyl‐3‐methylimidazolium chloride, 1‐octyl‐3‐methylimidazolium chloride, hydrochloric salts of N‐methylimidazole (MIm), pyridine and triethylamine, as well as bisulfate and dihydric phosphate of N‐methylimidazole. On this basis, the reaction mechanism was proposed, and the influences of the reaction temperature and the attributes of ionic liquids were discussed. The overall reaction was assumed to be comprised of two steps, the hydrolysis of CTC and reaction of HCl with alcohols under acidic catalyst. The results indicate that the conversion of CTC increased monotonically with temperature and even approached 100% at 200°C, while the maximum selectivity to alkyl chlorides was obtained around 160°C. This reaction might be potentially applicable to the resource utilization of superfluous byproduct of CTC in the chloromethane industry.     

Practical Enantioselective Arylation and Heteroarylation of Aldehydes with In Situ Prepared Organotitanium Reagents Catalyzed by 3‐Aryl‐H8‐BINOL‐Derived Titanium Complexes

A highly efficient and practical method for the catalytic enantioselective arylation and heteroarylation of aldehydes with organotitanium reagents, prepared in situ by the reaction of aryl‐ and heteroaryllithium reagents with ClTi(OiPr)₃, is described. Titanium complexes derived from DPP‐H₈‐BINOL ( 3 d ; DPP=3,5‐diphenylphenyl) and DTBP‐H₈‐BINOL ( 3 e ; DTBP=3,5‐di‐tert‐butylphenyl) exhibit excellent catalytic activity in terms of enantioselectivity and turnover efficiency for the transformation, providing diaryl‐, aryl heteroaryl‐, and diheteroarylmethanol derivatives in high enantioselectivity at low catalyst loading (0.2–2 mol %). The reaction begins with a variety of aryl and heteroaryl bromides through their conversion into organolithium intermediates by Br/Li exchange with nBuLi, thus providing straightforward access to a range of enantioenriched alcohols from commercially available starting materials. Various 2‐thienylmethanols can be synthesized enantioselectively by using commercially available 2‐thienyllithium in THF. The reaction can be carried out on a 10 mmol scale at 0.5 mol % catalyst loading, demonstrating its preparative utility.     

Enantioselective Oxidation of Secondary Alcohols Catalyzed by Soluble Chiral Polymeric [N′,N′‐Bis(salicylidene)ethane‐1,2‐diaminato(2−)]manganese(III) ([MnIII(salen)]) Type Complexes in a Biphasic System

The polymeric [N′,N′‐bis(salicylidene)ethane‐1,2‐diaminato(2?)]manganese(III) ([Mn^III(salen)]) type complexes 1 and 2 were successfully applied to the oxidative kinetic resolution of secondary alcohols. The reaction proceeded readily at room temperature with excellent enantioselectivities of up to 99.9% ee. A variety of substrates, including aromatic and aliphatic alcohols, could be tolerated. The polymeric catalysts could easily be recovered and recycled.     

A Novel One‐Pot Conversion of Allyl Alcohols into Primary Allyl Halides Mediated by Acetyl Halide

A new and simple method for the synthesis of the primary allyl chlorides and bromides 9 – 16 from the secondary or tertiary allyl alcohols 3 – 8 and acyl halide was developed (Scheme 2, Table 1). Non‐commercially available secondary and tertiary allyl alcohols were synthesized from the related ketones and aldehydes via the addition of vinylmagnesium chloride. Mechanistic studies indicate that the alcohols were first acetylated by the acetyl halide and then protonated prior to substitution by the halide, Cl^? or Br^?, via an S_N2′ reaction, to yield the primary halides (Scheme 5).     

Transition-Metal-Free TEMPO Catalyzed Aerobic Oxidation of Alcohols to Carbonyls Using an Efficient Br2 Equivalent under Mild Conditions

An effective transition‐metal‐free catalytic system is developed for aerobic oxidations of alcohols. Using catalytic amount of bromide‐bromate coupling, H₂SO₄, and NaNO₂, together with 2,2,6,6‐tetramethylpiperidine N‐oxyl radical (TEMPO) in the presence of air, various alcohols could be converted into the corresponding aldehydes or ketones in good to excellent isolated yields under mild conditions.     

Diversity‐Oriented Enantioselective Synthesis of Highly Functionalized Cyclic and Bicyclic Alcohols

The copper‐catalyzed hetero‐allylic asymmetric alkylation (h‐AAA) of functionalized Grignard reagents that contain alkene or alkyne moieties has been achieved with excellent regio‐ and enantioselectivity. The corresponding alkylation products were further transformed into a variety of highly functionalized cyclic and bicyclic alcohols with excellent control over the chemo‐, regio‐, and stereoselectivity.     

Preparation of Solid,Substituted Allylic Zinc Reagents and Their Reactions with Electrophiles

The treatment of various allylic chlorides or bromides with zinc dust in the presence of lithium chloride and magnesium pivalate (Mg(OCOtBu)₂) in THF affords allylic zinc reagents which, after evaporation of the solvent, produce solid zinc reagents that display excellent thermal stability. These allylic reagents undergo Pd‐catalyzed cross‐coupling reactions with PEPPSI‐IPent, as well as highly regioselective and diastereoselective additions to aryl ketones and aldehydes. Acylation with various acid chlorides regioselectively produces the corresponding homoallylic ketones, with the new C? C bond always being formed on the most hindered carbon of the allylic system.     

Synthesis of Highly Functionalized Propargylic Alcohols: Direct Addition of Epoxy Acetylides to Aldehydes and Ketones

Direct nucleophilic addition of terminal alkynes comprising an epoxy group to aldehydes and ketones is reported with BuLi or lithium diisopropylamide for the generation of the corresponding lithium acetylides. This alkynylation reaction tolerates a wide variety of different functional groups (e.g., alcohols, silyl ethers, halides, double bonds) in the carbonyl compound, as well as in the acetylenic nucleophile, and furnishes highly functionalized propargylic alcohols in good‐to‐excellent yields. The method is particularly useful for the regioselective introduction of an epoxide function into multiply unsaturated target molecules.     

Cl3CCONH2/PPh3: A Versatile Reagent for Synthesis of Esters

Cl₃CCONH₂/PPh₃ was a versatile reagent to convert carboxylic acids into their corresponding acid chlorides. This intermediate was clearly confirmed by spectroscopic methods (IR, ¹H, ¹³C NMR). This one-pot reaction of in situ acid chloride generated with various alcohols successfully furnished the corresponding esters in moderate to excellent yields.     

Solvent‐Free,Palladium‐Catalyzed Suzuki–Miyaura Cross‐Couplings of Aryl Chlorides with Arylboronic Acids

Pd(MeCN)₂Cl₂/PCy₃ was found to be an efficient catalytic system for the Suzuki–Miyaura cross‐couplings of aryl chlorides with arylboronic acids under solvent‐free conditions. Furthermore, the presence of the conventional solvents had deleterious effect on the reaction. In the presence of Pd(MeCN)₂Cl₂, PCy₃, and TBAF (tetra‐n‐butylammonium fluoride), a number of aryl chlorides including heteroaryl chlorides were coupled with arylboronic acids or heteroarylboronic acids smoothly to afford the corresponding products in moderate to excellent yields.     

Selective Silylation of Alcohols,Phenols and Oximes Using N‐Chlorosaccharin as an Efficient Catalyst under Mild and Solvent‐Free Conditions

Efficient silylation of OH group in alcohols, phenols and oximes is described using a catalytic amount of N‐chlorosaccharin and hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS) under mild and solvent‐free conditions. This silylation reaction can be carried out with excellent and interesting various selectivities.     

Mixed metal MgO–ZrO2 nanoparticle‐catalyzed O‐tert‐Boc protection of alcohols and phenols under solvent‐free conditions

An environmentally benign method for O‐tert‐Boc protection of alcohols and phenols catalyzed by MgO–ZrO₂ nanoparticles under solvent‐free conditions is described. A variety of phenols, alcohols (aliphatic and aromatic) were converted to corresponding O‐tert‐Boc products in good to excellent yield (50–95%). The present protocol is expedient, simple, and efficient under solvent‐free conditions. The MgO–ZrO₂ Nps are easily prepared from inexpensive precursors, and are reusable, recyclable and chemoselective. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.