Asymmetric electrochemical oxidation of 1,2-diols, aminoalcohols, and aminoaldehydes in the presence of chiral copper catalyst

Asymmetric oxidation of 1,2-diols, aminoalcohols, and aminoaldehydes in the presence of copper(II) triflate and (R,R)-Ph-BOX was accomplished by electrochemical method using Br⁻ as a mediator. This oxidation was applicable to kinetic resolution of racemic cis-cycloalkane-1,2-diols, aminoalcohols, and aminoaldehydes to afford optically active compounds with good to high enantioselectivity.     

A novel method of synthesis of 1,2-diketones from 1,2-diols using N-bromosuccinimide

A simple and convenient procedure is reported for the synthesis of benzils and aliphatic 1,2-diketones of cyclic and open chain compounds from corresponding hydrobenzoins and 1,2-diols by refluxing with N-bromosuccinimide in carbon tetrachloride in presence or absence of pyridine.     

Asymmetric desymmetrization of meso-vic-diols by carbamoylation catalyzed with a chiral Cu(II) complex

Asymmetric desymmetrization of meso-vic-diols was achieved by carbamoylation in the presence of copper triflate and (S,S)-Ph-BOX as a catalyst without any use of bases. The method was successfully applied to asymmetric desymmetrization of five- to eight-membered cyclic meso-vic-diols in high enantioselectivity with up to 93% ee.     

Asymmetric tosylation of racemic 2-hydroxyalkanamides with chiral copper catalyst

Kinetic resolution of 2-hydroxyalkanamides was performed by tosylation in the presence of copper(II) triflate and (R,R)-Ph-BOX as a catalyst. This method was successfully applied to a variety of 2-hydroxyalkanamides in high enantioselectivity with up to 92% ee, and then tosylated product was easily transformed into optically active -amino acid derivatives.     

Copper complex catalyzed asymmetric monosulfonylation of meso-vic-diols

Asymmetric desymmetrization of meso-vic-diols was performed by tosylation in the presence of copper(II) triflate and (R,R)-Ph-BOX as a catalyst. The method was successfully applied to asymmetric desymmetrization of cyclic and acyclic meso-vic-diols in high enantioselectivity with up to >99% ee.     

Stepwise oxidation of 1,2-diols resulting from molecular oxygen activation by copper

The oxidation of 1,2-diols through copper promoted activation of molecular oxygen was studied. The influence of the substituents and experimental conditions is discussed, and examples of catalytic applications are reported.     

Simple method for selective oxidation of 1,2-diols in water with KBrO3/KHSO4

Readily available off-the-shelf KBrO₃ and KHSO₄ have been used to selectively oxidize 1,2-diols in water as a solvent. Various cyclic 1,2-diols have been tolerated affording their corresponding α-hydroxy ketones in good yields.     

Aerobic alcohol oxidation using a PdCl2/N,N-dimethylacetamide catalyst system under mild conditions

A new and simple PdCl₂/DMA catalytic system for the alcohol oxidation has been developed using molecular oxygen as the sole oxidant under mild conditions. The catalytic system could be reused for three runs without significant loss of catalytic activity. A variety of active and non-active alcohols were oxidized to their corresponding carbonyl compounds in good to excellent yields. Gas-uptake kinetics for the catalytic system was also investigated. The ca. 1:1 molar ratio of O₂ uptake to product yield is observed, suggesting the in situ formation of H₂O₂.     

Aerobic oxidation of 1,3,5-triisopropylbenzene using N-hydroxyphthalimide (NHPI) as key catalyst

The first systematic study on the aerobic oxidation of 1,3,5-triisopropylbenzene was examined by the use of N-hydroxyphthalimide (NHPI) as a key catalyst. It was found that 1,3,5-triisopropylbenzene was efficiently oxidized with O₂ in the presence of a catalytic amount of NHPI and azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN) at 75 °C. Upon treatment of the resulting products with sulfuric acid followed by acetic anhydride led to 5-acetoxy-1,3-diisopropylbenzene and 3,5-diacetoxy-1-isopropylbenzene as major products and a small amount of 1,3,5-triacetoxybenzene. When t-butylperoxypivalate (BPP) was employed as a radical initiator, the oxidation could be achieved in good yield even at 50 °C. This oxidation provides a facile method for preparing phenol derivatives bearing an isopropyl moiety, which can be used as pharmaceutical starting materials.     

Selective and efficient oxidation of sulfides to sulfoxides with N-bromosuccinimide in the presence of β-cyclodextrin in water

A simple and highly selective oxidation of sulfides to sulfoxides with N-bromosuccinimide (NBS) catalyzed by β-cyclodextrin in water has been developed. A series of sulfides were oxidized selectively at room temperature in excellent yields. This reaction proceeds without over-oxidation to sulfones under mild conditions using water as a solvent and has many advantages over the existing methodologies.     

A simple and efficient method for α-bromination of carbonyl compounds using N-bromosuccinimide in the presence of silica-supported sodium hydrogen sulfate as a heterogeneous catalyst

α-Bromination of carbonyl compounds (cyclic and acyclic ketones, amides and β-ketoesters) has been achieved efficiently by treatment with N-bromosuccinimide (NBS) and catalyzed by silica-supported sodium hydrogen sulfate (NaHSO₄·SiO₂). The products were formed in high yields under mild reaction conditions and in short reaction times.     

Camphoric acid derived sulfur containing bicyclic carboxylic acids as chiral auxiliaries in N-acyliminium ion chemistry

Three novel sulfur containing chiral bicyclic carboxylic acids were synthesized from d-camphoric acid. Two of these compounds were briefly evaluated for their potency as chiral auxiliaries in Asymmetric Electrophilic α-Amidoalkylation (AEαA) reactions.     

Aerobic oxidative desymmetrization of meso-diols with bifunctional amidoiridium catalysts bearing chiral N-sulfonyldiamine ligands

Asymmetric aerobic oxidation of a range of meso- and prochiral diols with chiral bifunctional Ir catalysts is described. A high level of chiral discrimination ability of Cp^∗Ir complexes derived from (S,S)-1,2-diphenylethylenediamine was successfully demonstrated by desymmetrization of secondary benzylic diols such as cis-indan-1,3-diol and cis-1,4-diphenylbutane-1,4-diol, providing the corresponding (R)-hydroxyl ketones with excellent chemo- and enantioselectivities. Enantiotopic group discrimination in oxidation of symmetrical primary 1,4- and 1,5-diols gave rise to chiral lactones with moderate ees under similar aerobic conditions.     

Asymmetric O-methylhalohydrin reaction of chiral N-enoyl-2-oxazolidinones: synthesis of N-protected syn-β-methoxyphenylalanine, an unusual amino acid component of cyclomarins

Asymmetric O-methylhalohydrin reactions of chiral N-enoyl-2-oxazolidinones were performed with halogens (Br₂/I₂) promoted by silver(I) in methanol with high regio- and anti-selectivity and moderate to good diastereoselectivity. Reagent-controlled opposite diastereoselectivity was observed especially for cinnamoyl and electron-deficient cinnamoyl substrates. This method was applied to the short enantioselective synthesis of N-protected syn-β-methoxyphenylalanine, an unusual amino acid component of cyclomarins.     

Asymmetric radical cyclization reactions of axially chiral N-allyl-o-iodoanilides to form enantioenriched N-acyl dihydroindoles

Radical cyclizations of enantiomerically enriched N-allyl-o-iodoanilides provide N-acyl-3-alkyl-2,3-dihydroindoles in good yields and with good to excellent levels of chirality transfer from the N-Ar axis to the new stereocenter. In competitive cyclizations of N-acryloyl-N-allyl-o-iodoanilides, the addition of an o-methyl group reverses the regioselectivity of the radical cyclization from the acryloyl group to the allyl group. Approximate rate constants for representative radical cyclizations have been measured to provide insight into the origin of these observations.     

Novel cleavage of (E)-allyl vic-diols to aldehydes using the 2nd-generation Grubbs catalyst

Secondary (E)-allyl vic-diol cleavage in the presence of the 2nd-generation Grubbs catalyst has been developed. The position of a vic-diol adjacent to CC plays a crucial role in the cleavage reaction compared to an alkyl vic-diol based on a model compound.     

Tetrasubstituted pyrazinones derived from the reaction of praziquantel with N-bromosuccinimide

When praziquantel was exposed to N-bromosuccinimide in the presence of ethanol, a tricyclic 3-bromo-1-ethoxy pyrazinone was formed. From this and the analogous 1,3-dibromopyrazinone, a small library of 3-alkylamino-1-ethoxy, 1,3-dialkoxy, 3-alkoxy-1-bromo, and 3-alkylamino-1-bromo substituted pyrazinones were synthesized in high yields.     

Preconcentration and separation of copper (II) with solvent extraction using N,N′-bis(2-hydroxy-5-bromo-benzyl)1,2 diaminopropane

Preconcentration and separation with solvent extraction of Cu(II) from aqueous solution using N,N′-bis(2-hydroxy-5-bromo-benzyl)1,2 diaminopropane (H₂L) as the new extractant has been studied. Separation of Cu(II) from other metal ions such as Cd(II), Ni(II), Zn(II), Pb(II), Cr(III), Co(II) and Mn(II) at aqueous solutions of various pH values and complexing agent H₂L, has been described. The possible extraction mechanism and the compositions of the extracted species have been determined. The separation factors for these metals using this reagent are reported while efficient methods for the separation of Cu(II) from other metal ions are proposed. From the loaded organic phase, Cu(II) stripping was carried out in one stage with different mineral acid solutions. The stripping efficiency was found to be quantitative in case of HNO₃ and HCl. From quantitative evaluation of the extraction equilibrium data, it has been deduced that the complex extracted is the simple 1:1 chelate, CuL. The extraction constant has a value of logK_ex=−4.05±0.04.     

Flow injection determination of cationic surfactants by using N-bromosuccinimide and N-chlorosuccinimide as new oxidizing agents for luminol chemiluminescence

Two highly sensitive chemiluminescence (CL) systems are described. The method is based on the CL generated during the oxidation of luminol by N-bromosuccinimide (NBS) and N-chlorosuccinimide (NCS) in alkaline medium. The emission intensity is reduced by the presence of some surfactants at concentrations lower than critical micelle concentration (cmc).A new, simple, rapid and selective flow injection CL method for the determination of cationic surfactants such as dodecyltrimethylammonium bromide (DTAB), cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC) is proposed. Their determinations are based on the reducing effect on the emission intensity of NBS-luminol and NCS-luminol chemiluminescent reactions. The effect of analytical and flow injection analysis (FIA) variables on these CL systems and on the determination of the cationic surfactants are discussed. The optimum parameters for the determination of cationic surfactants were studied and were found to be the following: luminol, 1×10⁻⁶ M; NBS and NCS both, 5×10⁻² M; NaOH, 5×10⁻² M and flow rate, 3.5 ml min⁻¹.     

Construction of anti-1,2-diols bearing chiral tertiary alcohol moiety using free hydroxyacetone as aldol donor by imidazole-based prolineamide catalyst

A direct aldol reaction of free hydroxyacetone and activated ketone has been firstly achieved with a newly developed imidazole-based prolineamide catalyst. The adducts anti-1,2-diols bearing a chiral tertiary alcohol moiety were obtained in high yield (up to 92%) and stereoselectivity (up to 15:1 dr and 90% ee).