Room temperature metathesis of aryl isocyanates and aromatic aldehydes catalyzed by group(IV) metal alkoxides: An experimental and computational study

Aromatic aldehydes and aryl isocyanates do not react at room temperature. However, we have shown for the first time that in the presence of catalytic amounts of group(IV) n-butoxide, they undergo metathesis at room temperature to produce imines with the extrusion of carbon dioxide. The mechanism of action has been investigated by a study of stoichiometric reactions. The insertion of aryl isocyanates into the metal n-butoxide occurs very rapidly. Reaction of the insertion product with the aldehyde is responsible for the metathesis. Among the n-butoxides of group(IV) metals, Ti(OⁿBu)₄ (8aTi) was found to be more efficient than Zr(OⁿBu)₄ (8aZr) and Hf(OⁿBu)₄ (8aHf) in carrying out metathesis. The surprisingly large difference in the metathetic activity of these alkoxides has been probed computationally using model complexes Ti(OMe)₄ (8bTi), Zr(OMe)₄ (8bZr) and Hf(OMe)₄ (8bHf) at the B3LYP/LANL2DZ level of theory. These studies indicate that the insertion product formed by Zr and Hf are extremely stable compared to that formed by Ti. This makes subsequent reaction of Zr and Hf complexes unfavorable.