Iron-catalyzed conversion of unactivated aryl halides to phenols in water

Although iron is low-cost and environmentally friendly, there is no report about iron-catalyzed conversion of unactivated aryl halides to phenols. In this Letter, a new method for the present conversion was developed with iron compounds as the catalyst and water as the solvent. The suggested method allowed a series of unactivated aryl bromides and aryl iodides to be converted into the corresponding substituted phenols in moderate to high yields.     

Biaryl synthesis via Pd-catalyzed decarboxylative coupling of aromatic carboxylates with aryl halides

A new strategy for the regiospecific construction of unsymmetrical biaryls is presented, in which easily available salts of carboxylic acids are decarboxylated in situ to give arylmetal species that serve as the nucleophilic component in a catalytic cross-coupling reaction with aryl halides. The catalyst system consists of a copper phenanthroline complex that mediates the extrusion of CO2 from aromatic carboxylates to generate arylcopper species, and a palladium complex that catalyzes the cross-coupling of these intermediates with aryl halides. This bimetallic system allows the direct coupling of various aryl, heteroaryl, or vinyl carboxylic acids with aryl or heteroaryl iodides, bromides, or chlorides at 160 degrees C in the presence of a mild base such as potassium carbonate. The present scope and potential economic impact of the reaction are demonstrated by the synthesis of 42 biaryls, some of which are of substantial industrial relevance. Remaining challenges and future perspectives of the new transformation are discussed.     

C-H arylation of unactivated arenes with aryl halides catalyzed by cobalt porphyrin

A general procedure for cobalt-catalyzed direct C-H arylation of unactivated arenes has been discovered. This method employs aryl halides as the direct coupling partners with arenes without using any Grignard-type reagents. This catalysis opens a new methodology for the preparation of symmetrical as well as unsymmetrical biaryls in a user-friendly approach.     

New ligands that promote cross-coupling reactions between aryl halides and unactivated arenes

Several ligands were designed to promote transition-metal-free cross-coupling reactions of aryl halides with benzene derivatives. Among the systems probed, quinoline-1-amino-2-carboxylic acid was found to serve as an excellent catalyst for cross-coupling between aryl halides and unactivated benzene. Reactions using this inexpensive catalytic system displayed a high functional group tolerance as well as excellent chemoselectivities.     

A general and long-lived catalyst for the palladium-catalyzed coupling of aryl halides with thiols

A general catalytic system for the coupling of aryl halides and sulfonates with thiols based on the use of the CyPF-t-Bu ligand (1) is reported. The reactions catalyzed by complexes of 1 occur in excellent yields with broad scope and exhibit extraordinary turnover numbers and high tolerance of functional groups. Turnover numbers usually exceed those of previous catalysts by 2 or 3 orders of magnitude. In addition, the reactions of aryl tosylates with alkane thiols to form aryl sulfides are reported for the first time. Finally, the synthesis of a diarylsulfide from two bromoarenes was accomplished using a hydrogen sulfide surrogate.     

One-step synthesis of O-benzyl hydroxamates from unactivated aliphatic and aromatic esters

We have developed a simple and high yielding one-step method for the synthesis of hydroxamate derivatives directly from a broad range of unactivated esters and the anion of O-benzyl-hydroxylamine generated in situ. The reaction takes place in minutes at -78 degrees C. Very importantly, the method was successfully employed with enolizable esters, including chiral alpha-amino acid esters and peptides, with no trace of racemization/epimerization at the alpha carbon detected.     

A convenient one-pot synthesis of homoallylic halides and 1,3-butadienes

An efficient one-pot synthetic pathway for the preparation of homoallylic halides by in situ generated MgBrCl-promoted ring opening of cyclopropylcarbinyl acetates has been established. An easily accessible one-pot synthetic protocol of 1,3-butadienes by the elimination of hydrogen halides from the resulting homoallylic halides in the presence of an excess amount of strong base has also been developed.     

A general and efficient CuI/BtH catalyzed coupling of aryl halides with thiols

We report an exceptionally mild, general and efficient copper catalyzed cross coupling reaction of aryl bromides and thiols using 0.5 mol % CuI and 1 mol % benzotriazole. Experimental simplicity, generality, functional group tolerance and low cost of the catalyst are advantages of the protocol.     

A novel dual-nano assisted synthesis of symmetrical disulfides from aryl/alkyl halides

Here, we have reported a novel approach towards dual-nano assisted synthesis of disulfides from coupling of alkyl/aryl halides and sulfur nanoparticles. The indium oxide nanoparticles as catalyst expedite the conversion and sulfur nanoparticle notably enhances the miscibility, providing a faster, high yielding and cost-effective process in ethanol-water system. The method has synthetic advantages in terms of mild reaction framework, catalyst regeneration, and absence of any sulfide or polysulfide linkage as by-product leading to a column free synthesis. A variety of alkyl, aryl and heteroaryl symmetrical disulfides are obtained in good to excellent yields up to exceeding 98%.     

A new and convenient synthesis of alkyl and aryl pyrimidines

Vinyl triflates 1, which are obtained easily from the corresponding ketones, react in an excess of pure nitrile (80°/20 hours) to form tri- and tetra-substituted alkyl and arylpyrimidines 4 and 5 in good yields (45–87%). An isomeric mixture of pyrimidines 4 and 5 is formed from Inflate 1 when R¹ ≠ R² ≠ H. The reaction proceeds by nitrile-catalyzed elimination-addition mechanism.     

Oxidoreductive coupling of thiols with aryl halides catalyzed by copper on iron

Synthesis and utilization of a simple copper on iron catalyst in the coupling of aryl halides with thiols through disulfide intermediate is reported. The iron support of copper catalyst ensures reductive media for the coupling, allows easy removal of the metals by outer magnetic field and enables the recycling of the catalyst.     

Copper-catalyzed synthesis of phenols from aryl halides and 4-methoxylbenzyl alcohol

A catalytic method was developed to synthesize substituted phenols from the corresponding aryl bromides and chlorides under mild conditions (yields = 34–92%). 4-Methoxylbenzyl alcohol was used as water surrogate and CuI/3,4,7,8-tetramethyl-1,10-phenanthroline was used as catalyst to achieve the C–O cross-coupling.     

Copper-catalyzed synthesis of primary arylamines from aryl halides and 2,2,2-trifluoroacetamide

A catalytic method was developed to synthesize primary arylamines from the corresponding aryl bromides and iodides under mild conditions (yields = 80-99%). Crystalline 2,2,2-trifluoroacetamide was used as ammonia surrogate and CuI/N,N′-dimethyl ethylenediamine was used as catalyst to achieve the C-N cross-coupling.     

Decarboxylative biaryl synthesis from aromatic carboxylates and aryl triflates

A new catalyst system, generated in situ from Cu2O, 1,10-phenanthroline, PdI2, and Tol-BINAP, for the first time allows the decarboxylative coupling of carboxylic acids with aryl triflates. In contrast to previous decarboxylative couplings that remained limited to certain activated carboxylates, e.g., ortho-substituted benzoates, this halide-free protocol is generally applicable to aromatic carboxylic acid salts regardless of their substitution pattern.     

Solid-phase synthesis of diaryl sulfides: direct coupling of solid-supported aryl halides with thiols using an insoluble polymer-supported reagent

[reaction: see text] Diaryl sulfides have been prepared by direct nickel(II)-catalyzed coupling of thiols with iodoaryl bound to SynPhase polystyrene lanterns in the presence of polymer-supported borohydride.     

Triallyl(aryl)silanes serve as a convenient agent for silicon-based cross-coupling reaction of aryl halides

Triallyl(aryl)silanes, stable and easily accessible arylsilanes, were found to react with aryl bromides in the presence of a palladium catalyst (PdCl₂-PCy₃) and tetrabutylammonium fluoride (TBAF) in good yields. The scope of the reaction is broad, and a wide variety of functional groups are tolerant. Allyl groups on Si are readily cleaved upon treatment with TBAF to form fluorosilanes, silanepolyols, siloxanes and/or their mixed forms, which might be responsible for high efficiency of the reaction.     

Cu(I) mediated one-pot synthesis of azobenzenes from bis-Boc aryl hydrazines and aryl halides

N,N^′-bis-Boc aryl hydrazines underwent Cu(I) catalyzed couplings with aryl halides to provide N,N^′-bis-Boc diaryl hydrazines. The resulting N,N^′-bis-Boc diaryl hydrazines are readily oxidized to the azobenzenes in the presence of Cu(I) and a base. A prolonged heating of the initial coupling reactions directly provides the corresponding azobenzenes in one pot.