Carbon-halogen bond activation mechanism by copper(I) complexes of (2-pyridyl)alkylamine ligands

The reaction of p-substituted benzyl halides ((Y)BnX; X = Cl, Br, and I; Y = p-substituent, OMe, t-Bu, Me, H, F, Cl, and NO(2)) and copper(I) complexes supported by a series of (2-pyridyl)alkylamine ligands has been investigated to shed light on the mechanism of copper(I) complex mediated carbon-halogen bond activation, including ligand effects on the redox reactivity of copper(I) complexes which are relevant to the chemistry. For both the tridentate ligand (Phe)L(Pym2) N,N-bis(2-pyridylmethyl)-2-phenylethylamine] and tetradentate ligand TMPA tris(2-pyridylmethyl)amine] complexes, the C-C coupling reaction of benzyl halides proceeded smoothly to give corresponding 1,2-diphenylethane derivatives and copper(II)-halide complex products. Kinetic analysis revealed that the reaction obeys second-order kinetics both on the copper complex and the substrate; rate = kCu](2)(Y)BnX](2). A reaction mechanism involving a dinuclear copper(III)-halide organometallic intermediate is proposed, on the basis of the kinetic results, including observed electronic effects of p-substituents (Hammett plot) and the rate dependence on the BDE (bond dissociation energy) of the C-X bond, as well as the ligand effects.