Hypervalent Iodine(III)‐Mediated Oxidative Fluorination of Alkylsilanes by Fluoride Ions

The first example of a hypervalent iodine(III)‐mediated oxidative fluorination of alkylsilanes by fluoride ions without the use of transition metals is demonstrated. This reaction is operationally simple, scalable, and proceeds under mild reaction conditions. Mechanistic studies suggest the involvement of a single‐electron transfer resulting from the interaction of an organopentafluorosilicate and aryliodonium difluoride, which were generated in situ from the corresponding alkylsilane and iodosobenzene, respectively, in the presence of fluoride ions.     

Electrochemical Vicinal Difluorination of Alkenes: Scalable and Amenable to Electron-Rich Substrates

Fluorinated alkyl groups are important motifs in bioactive compounds, positively influencing pharmacokinetics, potency and conformation. The oxidative difluorination of alkenes represents an important strategy for their preparation, yet current methods are limited in their alkene-types and tolerance of electron-rich, readily oxidized functionalities, as well as in their safety and scalability. Herein, we report a method for the difluorination of a number of unactivated alkene-types that is tolerant of electron-rich functionality, giving products that are otherwise unattainable. Key to success is the electrochemical generation of a hypervalent iodine mediator using an “ex-cell” approach, which avoids oxidative substrate decomposition. The more sustainable conditions give good to excellent yields in up to decagram scales.     

Enantioselective Palladium(II)-Catalyzed Oxidative Aminofluorination of Unactivated Alkenes with Et4NF⋅3 HF as a Fluoride Source

The first asymmetric Pd^II-catalyzed aminofluorination of unactivated alkenes using chiral quinoline-oxazolines (Quox) as ligands has been developed. This reaction provides easy access to a wide array of enantiomerically enriched β-fluoropiperidines in good yields and with excellent enantioselectivity. Notably, Et₄NF⋅3 HF as a readily accessible nucleophilic fluoride source was found to play an essential role in the enantioselective control, and CsOCF₃ also acts a key additive to improve the excellent ee value of products.     

Efficient Synthesis of α‐Trifluoromethyl Carboxylic Acids and Esters through Fluorocarboxylation of gem‐Difluoroalkenes

A facile synthetic procedure for the preparation of α‐trifluoromethyl carboxylic acids and esters was achieved through multicomponent coupling reactions between gem‐difluoroalkenes, cesium fluoride, and carbon dioxide. The products were generated in moderate to excellent yields, and the synthetic utility of this method was demonstrated through the preparation of trifluoromethylated versions of popular nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).     

Stereospecific Electrophilic Fluorination of Alkylcarbastannatrane Reagents

We report the use of isolable primary and secondary alkylcarbastannatrane nucleophiles in site‐specific fluorination reactions. These reactions occur without the need for transition metal catalysis or in situ activation of the nucleophile. In the absence of the carbastannatrane backbone, alkyltin nucleophiles exhibit no activity towards fluorination. When enantioenriched alkylcarbastannatranes are employed, fluorination occurs predominately via a stereoinvertive mechanism to generate highly enantioenriched alkyl fluoride compounds. These conditions can also be extended to stereospecific chlorination, bromination, and iodination reactions.