Reductive etherification of carbonyl compounds with alkyl trimethylsilylethers using polymethylhydrosiloxane (PMHS) and catalytic B(C6F5)3

A facile synthesis of symmetrical and unsymmetrical ethers is achieved by reductive coupling of carbonyl compounds with alkoxysilanes. This reaction is performed using inert polymethylhydrosiloxane as the hydride source and B(C₆F₅)₃ as the catalytic activator of the PMHS.     

DFT Study for a Series of Less-Symmetrical Crown Ethers and Their Complexes with Alkali Metal Cations

A series of ring‐contracted (14‐crown‐5, 17‐crown‐6) and ring‐enlarged (16‐crown‐5, 17‐crown‐5, 19‐crown‐6, 20‐crown‐6) crown ethers and their complexes with alkali‐metal cations Na⁺ and K⁺ had been explored using density functional theory (DFT) at B3LYP/6‐31G* level in order to reveal the effects of the methylene‐chain length in a crown ether. The nucleophilicity of all crown ethers had been investigated by the Fukui functions. The quantum chemistry parameters, such as the energy gap (ΔE), the highest occupied molecular orbital energy (E_HOMO) and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital energy (E_LUMO) for less‐symmetrical crown ethers and symmetrical frameworks (15‐crown‐5, 18‐crown‐6) had been calculated. In addition, the thermodynamic energies of complexation reactions had also been studied. The results of the DFT calculations show that the methylene‐chain length plays an important role in determining the structure characters of the crown ethers and also strongly influences the properties of the ethers. Some of the calculated results are in a good agreement with the experimental values.     

Etherification of Ferrocenyl Alcohol by Highly‐efficient Ytterbium Triflate

Nucleophilic substitution of ferrocenyl alcohols with various aliphatic alcohols in the presence of a catalytic amount of ytterbium triflate [Yb(OTf)₃] was studied. It was found the unsymmetrical ferrocenyl ethers could be easily obtained in excellent yields when the reactions were performed in primary and secondary alcohols. However, in other organic non‐alcoholic solvents such as acetonitrile, the formation of symmetrical ferrocenyl ethers rather than unsymmetrical ones was observed.     

Nucleophilic Reactivity of Ethers Against Terminal Epoxides in the Presence of BF3: A Mechanistic Study

In the presence of BF₃, a series of symmetrical and unsymmetrical ethers reacted with epichlorohydrin and 2‐[(benzyloxy)methyl]oxirane, two terminal epoxides, to afford 1‐alkoxy‐3‐chloropropan‐2‐ol and 1‐alkoxy‐3‐(benzyloxy)propan‐2‐ol. The cleavage of unsymmetrical ethers occurred via an S_N2 or S_N1 mechanism. Secondary epoxides did not give similar ring‐opening products.     

Reductive coupling reaction of aldehydes using indium(III) triflate as the catalyst

A reductive coupling reaction was effectively developed to convert an aldehyde to its symmetrical ether. The successful reactions required Et₃SiH and CH₂Cl₂ as the suitable solvent in the presence of a catalytic amount of In(OTf)₃. Various aldehydes were subjected to the method, and each afforded the expected ethers in good to excellent yields.     

Copper(II) triflate-catalyzed reduction of carboxylic acids to alcohols and reductive etherification of carbonyl compounds

A protocol is described for the reduction of carboxylic acids to primary alcohols using 1,1,3,3-tetramethyldisiloxane (TMDS) and a catalytic amount of Cu(OTf)₂. Aliphatic as well as aromatic carboxylic acids are reduced in high selectivity and good yields. TMDS/Cu(OTf)₂ has also been found to be an efficient catalytic reducing system for the preparation of symmetrical ethers from carbonyl compounds under mild conditions.     

Synthesis of Phosphorus-Containing Podands―Analogs of Diglycolamide Based on Diphenyl- and Dibutylphosphorylmethanol under Phase Transfer Catalysis Conditions

A convenient method for preparation of phosphorus-containing podands R₂P(O)CH₂OCH₂X, where X = C(O)NBu₂; P(O)R′₂, R = R′ = Ph, Bu, R = Ph, R′ = Bu via OH-alkylation of phosphorylmethanols under the phase transfer conditions in the presence of Cs₂CO₃ was developed. Carbamoyl-substituted dimethyl ethers were synthesized via transformation of phosphorylmethanols to phosphorylmethoxyacetic acids, followed by amidation. Symmetrical bisphosphoryl substituted dimethyl ethers were obtained by reaction of phosphorylmethanols with tosyl chloride in the presence of Cs₂CO₃. The synthesis of unsymmetrical substituted ether in the presence of Cs₂CO₃ was complicated by transesterification of phosphorylmethyl tosylate resulting in the formation of symmetrical dimethyl ethers as byproducts.     

Extension of the Application of Piers-Rubinsztajn Conditions to Produce Triarylamine Pendant Dimethylsiloxane Copolymers

Summary: In this paper we show how the strong organic Lewis acid catalyst, tris(pentafluorophenyl)borane (B(C₆F₅) or BCF), can be used to facilitate the functionalization of simple polymeric silicones with a triarylamine yielding a novel class of charge transporting materials. The reaction conditions we refer to as Piers-Rubinsztajn Conditions and we have previously shown such conditions to be suitable when using phenylated silicones as precursors. In this work we found they also work successfully for a silicone oligomer as well as cocopolymers of polymethylhydridosiloxane (PMHS) and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and a PMHS homopolymer, all of which are highly abundent and available in industrial quanitities. The resulting material was either a waxy solid, viscous oil or a glass. An additional “finishing” step with anisole using the same chemistry was found necessary to prevent gelation of the copolymer and homopolymer of PMHS. Even after finishing a small fraction (<5%) of Si-H groups remained in the silicones. This nonetheless provides a rapid and mild method to synthesize functional silicones and tune their physical properties, using commonly available starting materials.     

In(OTf)3 catalyzed reductive etherification of 2-aryloxybenzaldehydes and 2-(arylthio)benzaldehydes

2-Aryloxybenzaldehydes and 2-(arylthio)benzaldehydes undergo reductive etherification in presence of 5 mol% In(OTf)₃ and stoichiometric amount of Et₃SiH under solvent free conditions to generate novel symmetrical dibenzyl ethers and thioethers in excellent yields. In(OTf)₃ is found to be superior in terms of catalytic activity over the other metal triflates tested for the reaction. Xanthenes and thioxanthenes, as anticipated, could not be obtained under these conditions.     

Exhaustive and partial alkoxylation of polymethylhydrosiloxane by copper‐catalyzed dehydrocoupling with alcohols: Synthesis,crosslinking behavior,and thermal properties of the products

Polymethylhydrosiloxane (PMHS) reacts with aliphatic and aromatic alcohols at room temperature in the presence of [CuH(PPh₃)]₆ complex catalyst to give poly[(methyl) (alkoxy)siloxane]s in high yields. Reactivity of alcohols decreases in the order of p‐methoxyphenol > p‐cresol > phenol > benzyl alcohol > allyl alcohol > ethanol > isopropanol > tert‐butyl alcohol. Partially p‐cresylated polymers, which still retain unreacted Si? H bonds, react further with ethylene glycol or water to form cross‐linked polymers, which, depending on the extent of cross linking, gelate during the cross‐linking process. Propargyl alcohol reacts with PMHS very rapidly to give exhaustively and partially propargyloxylated PMHS. Resulting polymers, upon heating, undergo crosslinking. Partially propargyloxylated polymers display high thermal stability [T_d5 (temperature of 5% weight loss) > 500 °C] as compared with starting PMHS (243 °C) and exhaustively propargyloxylated one (414 °C). © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011     

A selective and convenient ruthenium mediated method for the synthesis of mixed acetals and orthoesters

Addition of alcohols and phenols to O-allyl compounds (allyl ethers and acrolein acetals), catalyzed by [RuCl₂(PPh₃)₃], was examined. Intramolecular addition of an OH group, leading to the formation of cyclic acetals and orthoesters, was also investigated. As a result, a new, selective and convenient method for the synthesis of symmetrical and unsymmetrical (mixed) acetals and orthoesters was developed.     

Functionalization of surface‐grafted polymethylhydrosiloxane thin films with alkyl side chains

Thin films of crosslinked polymethylhydrosiloxane (PMHS) have been grafted on silica using the sol–gel process allowing further functionalization by effective quantitative hydrosilylation of SiH groups by olefins within the network. Postfunctionalization gives the polysiloxane network with n‐alkyl side chains. The PMHS coating was prepared by room temperature polycondensation of a mixture of methyldiethoxysilane HSiMe(OEt)₂ monomer and triethoxysilane HSi(OEt)₃ (TH) as crosslinker. The surface‐attached films are chemically stable and covalently bonded to the silica surface. Subsequently, films were functionalized without delamination. We showed by FTIR spectroscopy how the crosslinking ratio and the molecular size of the alkenes precursors influence the extent of the hydrosilylation reaction of SiH groups in the PMHS network. We have determined that quasi‐full olefin addition catalyzed by a platinum complex occurred within soft networks of less than 5% TH with 1‐alkenes CH₂?CH(CH₂)_n‐2CH₃ of various alkyl chain lengths (n = 5, 11, 17). Powders of PMHS gel were also modified with 1‐alkenes by hydrosilylation. The SiH groups within the soft gel (5% crosslinked) were fully functionalized as shown by ²⁹Si and ¹H solid‐state NMR. The structure of functionalized polysiloxane with n‐octadecyl and n‐dodecyl side chains was studied by FTIR, wide angle X‐ray diffraction, and DSC showing crystallization of the long n‐alkyl chains in the network. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 46: 3546–3562, 2008     

Elaboration and Characterisation of Hybrid Materials of Polymethylhydrosiloxane Modified by Diamines of Various Lengths

The polymethylhydrosiloxane (PMHS) modified by bifunctional organic compounds (diamines), offer the possibility of producing organic-inorganic hybrid materials. These materials present excellent opto-electronic properties and find numerous applications such as the manufacture of electroluminescent diodes and ion or radiation sensors.This work shows that monolithic and transparent hybrid gels were obtained by reaction at room temperature of PMHS with diamines in tetrahydrofuran, using hexachloroplatinic acid (H₂PtCl₆·6H₂O) as catalyst. The products have been characterized by infrared and ²⁹Si MAS-NMR spectroscopy. The results show that the diamines have reacted with the PMHS leading to the monolithic and transparent gels in which both organic-inorganic —Si—(H)N—(CH₂) _n —N(H)—Si— bridges are formed (n = 3, 4 and 6). The thermal analysis of the xerogels was determined by TGA and DTA. The structure and texture of the obtained materials, were studied by Chemical Analysis and the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) method.     

Base‐Catalyzed Hydrosilylation of Ketones and Esters and Insight into the Mechanism

Simple bases (KOtBu, KOH) catalyze the silane‐promoted reduction of ketones and esters to alcohols and of aldimines to amines. The inexpensive silane PMHS (polymethylhydrosiloxane) can be used as the reducing reagent. Double and triple bonds, as well as nitro‐ and cyano‐groups are tolerated. Careful dosing of the silane allows for chemoselective reduction of a more reactive group in the presence of a less reactive group (for example, aldehyde reduction in the presence of ketone/ketone reduction in the presence of ester group). Mechanistic studies showed that addition of base to silanes leads to silicate species, which are the acting reducing agents. Under basic conditions, hydrosiloxanes (tetramethyldisiloxane, TMDS; PMHS) convert into simple silanes (H₂SiMe₂, H₃SiMe), making this a practical method to generate these challenging silanes.     

Room Temperature Synthesis and Characterization of Hybrid Materials of Polymethylhydrosiloxane Modified by Hydroxide Organic Compounds

New monolithic and transparent hybrid gels were obtained by reaction at room temperature of polymethylhydrosiloxane (PMHS) with 1,3,5-trihydroxybenzene (DO_1,3,5) and 2-hydroxybenzoic acid (DO₂), in tetrahydrofuran, using hexachloroplatinic acid (H₂PtCl₆·6H₂O) as catalyst. The products have been characterized by infrared and ²⁹Si MAS-NMR spectroscopy. The results show that the organic compounds have reacted with the PMHS, leading to monolithic and transparent gels in which organic-inorganic bridges were formed. An appropriate thermal treatment procedure was determined from TGA and DTA curves recorded on the hybrid gel powder after drying at 70 °C. The morphology and structure of the materials obtained were studied by scanning electronic microscopy (SEM) and X-ray powder diffraction (XRD).     

First example of the activation of polymethylhydrosiloxane with molecular iodine: a facile synthesis of 3,6-dihydropyran derivatives

Glycals react rapidly with polymethylhydrosiloxane (PMHS) in the presence of a catalytic amount of molecular iodine under mild conditions to afford the corresponding 3,6-dihydropyran derivatives in excellent yields. Et₃SiH/I₂ was also found to be effective for this conversion.     

Efficient Conversion of Carbon Dioxide with Si‐Based Reducing Agents Catalyzed by Metal Complexes and Salts

Homogeneous metal complex and salt catalysts were developed for the reductive transformation of CO₂ with Si‐based reducing agents. Cu‐bisphosphine complexes were found to be excellent catalysts for the hydrosilylation of CO₂ with polymethylhydrosiloxane (PMHS). The Cu complexes also showed high catalytic activity and a wide substrate scope for formamide synthesis from amines, CO₂, and PMHS. Simple fluoride salts such as tetrabutylammonium fluoride acted as good catalysts for the reductive conversion of CO₂ to formic acid in the presence of hydrosilane, disilane, and metallic Si. Based on the kinetics, isotopic experiments, and in‐situ NMR measurements, the reaction mechanism for both catalyst systems, the Cu complex and the fluoride salt, have been proposed.     

Sol–gel composite coatings from methyltriethoxysilane and polymethylhydrosiloxane

New composite coatings were prepared by mixing pre-hydrolyzed methyltriethoxysilane (MTES) sol by an acidic catalyst dibutyltin dilaurate (DBTDL) and polymethylhydrosiloxane (PMHS) in gasoline at room temperature. The gel process was thoroughly investigated regarding the use of different basic catalyst [3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) or triethylamine (TEA)], as well as the ratios of pre-hydrolyzed MTES sol and PMHS with various content of active H. It was revealed that the composite coating from 2:1 ratio (w/w) of pre-hydrolyzed MTES sol with equimolar amounts of water and PMHS_1.55 under the catalysis of APTES demonstrated high pencil hardness, and excellent resistance against contamination and corrosion. This composite coating (MTPM21-A) was further characterized by FTIR, ²⁹Si NMR, DSC and TGA.     

Tribenzotriquinacenes Based on Regioselective Bis‐formylation: Optical Resolution and Absolute Configuration of Inherently Chiral Derivatives and Synthesis of the First Cyclophane‐Type Tribenzotriquinacene Dimers

Enantiomerically pure tribenzotriquinacenes (TBTQs) bearing two monofunctionalized aromatic nuclei were synthesized for the first time and their optical properties and absolute configuration determined. A remarkably regioselective bis‐formylation of the fully bridgehead methylated parent TBTQ hydrocarbon with MeOCHCl₂/TiCl₄ afforded a mixture of two C_s‐symmetrical (achiral) difunctionalized derivatives together with one C₁‐symmetrical (chiral) isomer. Reduction and subsequent column chromatography furnished the three respective benzylic TBTQ dialcohols. Optical resolution of the racemic 2,6‐bis(hydroxymethyl) derivative was achieved via the diastereomeric (R)‐1,1′‐bi‐2‐naphthol ethers and the absolute configuration of the enantiomers was determined by CD exciton model analysis. The electronic circular dichroism (ECD) spectra and the specific rotation of the enantiomers were found to agree with the results of DFT calculations. Among the C_s‐symmetrical isomers, the “proximal” 2,11‐dialdehyde and the corresponding benzylic dialcohol were identified by 2D NMR spectroscopy and X‐ray crystallographic analysis, respectively, and used as the starting point for the synthesis of several novel dithiametacyclophanes. These include the first “dimeric” tribenzotriquinacene‐based cyclophanes bearing the bowls of the two TBTQ units attached to each other in a syn (concave–concave) or anti (convex–concave) configuration. The usefulness of such thiacyclophanes as fluorescent chemosensors for different metal ions is also demonstrated.     

Facile and Effective Synthesis of Siloxane‐Based Polyamines

Linear and cyclic polysiloxanes with pendant amine moieties have been synthesized via the [(C₆H₅)₃P]₃RhCl‐catalyzed dehydrogenative alcoholysis of poly(methylhydrosiloxane) (PMHS) or cyclotetra‐(methylhydrosiloxane) (D4H) with hydroxyalkylamines.