Gold-catalyzed direct arylation

Palladium-Catalyzed, Site-Selective Direct Allylation of Aryl C-H Bonds by Silver-Mediated C-H Activation: A Synthetic and Mechanistic Investigation

We describe a method for the site-selective construction of a C(aryl)-C(sp³) bond by the palladium-catalyzed direct allylation of arenes with allylic pivalates in the presence of AgOPiv to afford the linear (E)-allylated arene with excellent regioselectivity; this reaction occurs with arenes that have not undergone site-selective and stereoselective direct allylation previously, such as monofluorobenzenes and non-fluorinated arenes. Mechanistic studies indicate that AgOPiv ligated by a phosphine reacts with the arene to form an arylsilver(I) species, presumably through a concerted metalation-deprotonation pathway. The activated aryl moiety is then transferred to an allylpalladium(II) intermediate formed by oxidative addition of the allylic pivalate to the Pd(0) complex. Subsequent reductive elimination furnishes the allyl-aryl coupled product. The aforementioned proposed intermediates, including an arylsilver complex, have been isolated, structurally characterized, and determined to be chemically and kinetically competent to undergo the proposed elementary steps of the catalytic cycle.

A Pincer Ruthenium Complex for Regioselective C-H Silylation of Heteroarenes

A pincer Ru(II) catalyst for the highly efficient undirected silylation of O- and S-heteroarenes with (TMSO)₂MeSiH and Et₃SiH is described, producing heteroarylsilanes with exclusive C2-regioselectivity, good functional-group tolerance, and high turnover numbers (up to 1960). The synthetic utility of the silylated products is demonstrated by Pd-catalyzed Hiyama-Denmark cross-coupling under mild conditions. One-pot, two-step silylation and coupling procedures have been also developed.

Au(iii)-aryl intermediates in oxidant-free C-N and C-O cross-coupling catalysis

Au(iii)-aryl species have been crystallographically isolated as reactive intermediates in oxidant-free C–O and C–N cross coupling processes, using aromatic and aliphatic alcohols and amines, as well as water and amides, as nucleophiles.

Au(iii)-aryl species have been unequivocally identified as reactive intermediates in oxidant-free C–O and C–N cross coupling catalysis. The crystal structures of cyclometalated neutral and cationic Au(iii) species are described and their key role in 2 electron-redox Au(i)/Au(iii) catalysis in C–O and C–N cross couplings is shown. Nucleophiles compatible with Au-catalyzed cross couplings include aromatic and aliphatic alcohols and amines, as well as water and amides.

Nucleophile promoted gold redox catalysis with diazonium salts: C-Br, C-S and C-P bond formation through catalytic Sandmeyer coupling

Gold-catalyzed C-heteroatom (C-X) coupling reactions are evaluated without using sacrificial oxidants. Vital to the success of this methodology is the nucleophile-assisted activation of aryldiazonium salts, which could be an effective oxidant for converting Au(i) to Au(iii) even without the addition of an assisting ligand or photocatalyst. By accelerating the reaction kinetics to outcompete C-C homo-coupling or diazonium dediazoniation, gold-catalyzed Sandmeyer reactions were achieved with different nucleophiles, forming C-Br, C-S and C-P bonds in high yields and selectivities.

Room-Temperature Gold-Catalysed Arylation of Heteroarenes: Complementarity to Palladium Catalysis

Tailoring of the pre-catalyst, the oxidant and the arylsilane enables the first room-temperature, gold-catalysed, innate C-H arylation of heteroarenes. Regioselectivity is consistently high and, in some cases, distinct from that reported with palladium catalysis. Tolerance to halides and boronic esters, in both the heteroarene and silane partners, provides orthogonality to Suzuki-Miyaura coupling.

Catalytic Reductive ortho-C-H Silylation of Phenols with Traceless, Versatile Acetal Directing Groups and Synthetic Applications of Dioxasilines

A new, highly selective, bond functionalization strategy, achieved via relay of two transition metal catalysts and the use of traceless acetal directing groups, has been employed to provide facile formation of C-Si bonds and concomitant functionalization of a silicon group in a single vessel. Specifically, this approach involves the relay of Ir-catalyzed hydrosilylation of inexpensive and readily available phenyl acetates, exploiting disubstituted silyl synthons to afford silyl acetals and Rh-catalyzed ortho-C-H silylation to provide dioxasilines. A subsequent nucleophilic addition to silicon removes the acetal directing groups and directly provides unmasked phenol products and, thus, useful functional groups at silicon achieved in a single vessel. This traceless acetal directing group strategy for catalytic ortho-C-H silylation of phenols was also successfully applied to preparation of multisubstituted arenes. Remarkably, a new formal α-chloroacetyl directing group has been developed that allows catalytic reductive C-H silylation of sterically hindered phenols. In particular, this new method permits access to highly versatile and nicely differentiated 1,2,3-trisubstituted arenes that are difficult to access by other catalytic routes. In addition, the resulting dioxasilines can serve as chromatographically stable halosilane equivalents, which allow not only removal of acetal directing groups but also introduce useful functional groups leading to silicon-bridged biaryls. We demonstrated that this catalytic C-H bond silylation strategy has powerful synthetic potential by creating direct applications of dioxasilines to other important transformations, examples of which include aryne chemistry, Au-catalyzed direct arylation, sequential orthogonal cross-couplings, and late-stage silylation of phenolic bioactive molecules and BINOL scaffolds.

Access to the Parent Tetrakis(pyridine)gold(III) Trication, Facile Formation of Rare Au(III) Terminal Hydroxides, and Preliminary Studies of Biological Properties

In this paper we report on the use of [NO][BF4] to access tricationic tetrakis(pyridine)gold(III) from Au powder, a species inaccessible using the more traditional (tetrahydrothiophene)AuCl route. It is then demonstrated that this family of compounds can be used to access new terminal Au(III) hydroxides, a challenging class of compounds, and the first crystallographically characterized examples employing bidentate ligands. Finally, preliminary biological studies indicate good activity for derivatives featuring polydentate ligands against the HeLa and PC3 cell lines but also strong inhibition of primary HUVEC cells.

Boron-Catalyzed Aromatic C-H Bond Silylation with Hydrosilanes

Metal-free catalytic C-H silylation of a series of aromatic compounds such as N,N-disubstituted anilines with various hydrosilanes has been achieved for the first time using commercially available B(C6F5)3 as a catalyst. This protocol features simple and neutral reaction conditions, high regioselectivity, wide substrate scope (up to 40 examples), Si-Cl bond compatibility, and no requirement for a hydrogen acceptor.

Advances in Synthetic Applications of Hypervalent Iodine Compounds

The preparation, structure, and chemistry of hypervalent iodine compounds are reviewed with emphasis on their synthetic application. Compounds of iodine possess reactivity similar to that of transition metals, but have the advantage of environmental sustainability and efficient utilization of natural resources. These compounds are widely used in organic synthesis as selective oxidants and environmentally friendly reagents. Synthetic uses of hypervalent iodine reagents in halogenation reactions, various oxidations, rearrangements, aminations, C-C bond-forming reactions, and transition metal-catalyzed reactions are summarized and discussed. Recent discovery of hypervalent catalytic systems and recyclable reagents, and the development of new enantioselective reactions using chiral hypervalent iodine compounds represent a particularly important achievement in the field of hypervalent iodine chemistry. One of the goals of this Review is to attract the attention of the scientific community as to the benefits of using hypervalent iodine compounds as an environmentally sustainable alternative to heavy metals.

Pd(II)-catalysed meta-C-H functionalizations of benzoic acid derivatives

Benzoic acids are highly important structural motifs in drug molecules and natural products. Selective C–H bond functionalization of benzoic acids will provide synthetically useful tools for step-economical organic synthesis. Although direct ortho-C–H functionalizations of benzoic acids or their derivatives have been intensely studied, the ability to activate meta-C–H bond of benzoic acids or their derivatives in a general manner via transition-metal catalysis has been largely unsuccessful. Although chelation-assisted meta-C–H functionalization of electron-rich arenes was reported, chelation-assisted meta-C–H activation of electron-poor arenes such as benzoic acid derivatives remains a formidable challenge. Herein, we report a general protocol for meta-C–H olefination of benzoic acid derivatives using a nitrile-based sulfonamide template. A broad range of benzoic acid derivatives are meta-selectively olefinated using molecular oxygen as the terminal oxidant. The meta-C–H acetoxylation, product of which is further transformed at the meta-position, is also reported.

While directed ortho-metalation is a well-established protocol, meta-functionalisation of aromatic groups is more challenging. Here, the authors report a directed meta-C-H functionalisation of benzoic acid derivatives, using a nitrile-based sulfonamide directing group.

In situ growth of small Au nanoparticles on ZnO nanorods via ultrasonic irradiation toward super-enhanced catalytic activity

Au/ZnO NRs created via a sonochemical method exhibit superior photocatalytic performance and enhanced CO oxidation activity.

CuBr2-promoted cyclization and bromination of arene–alkynes: C–Br bond formation via reductive elimination of Cu(iii) species

A CuBr₂-promoted cyclization and bromination of arene–alkynes was developed, affording 9-bromophenanthrenes via reductive elimination of the Cu(iii) species.

Dual gold photoredox C(sp2)–C(sp2) cross couplings – development and mechanistic studies

A new oxidant- and base-free dual catalysed C(sp²)–C(sp²) coupling between arylboronic acids and aryldiazonium salts has been developed. Mechanistic investigations reveal two divergent pathways depending on the gold catalyst employed.

Nickel catalyzed reduction of arenols under mild conditions

The mild Ni-catalyzed reduction of arenols features a broad substrate scope, non-sensitivity to steric hindrance and no over-reduction of the aryl ring.

Direct arylation polymerization towards narrow bandgap conjugated microporous polymers with hierarchical porosity

Conjugated microporous polymers are synthesized via facile direct arylation polymerization, resulting in conjugated networks with hierarchical porosity and a narrow bandgap of 1.5 eV.

Arenediazonium salts as electrophiles for the oxidative addition of gold(i)

Arenediazonium salts have been found to behave as efficient electrophiles for the oxidation of gold(i). Starting from anilines, a one pot cross-coupling reaction of anilines with silver acetylides mediated by gold has been developed.

Ru-catalysed C–H silylation of unprotected gramines, tryptamines and their congeners

Directed and undirected Ru-catalysed C–H silylation of unprotected heteroarenes is presented which requires no protecting groups.

Stereoselective synthesis of vinylsilanes via copper-catalyzed silylation of alkenes with silanes

An efficient and stereoselective synthesis of vinylsilanes via copper-catalyzed direct silylation of alkenes with silanes was developed.

Gold-catalysed cross-coupling between aryldiazonium salts and arylboronic acids: probing the usefulness of photoredox conditions

Combining gold catalysis and photoredox processes allowed the synthesis of biaryl compounds from diazonium salts and boronic acids under mild conditions.

Gold-catalyzed bis(stannylation) of propiolates

Bis(stannylation) of propiolates with hexabutylditin is achieved under mild conditions using a cationic gold(i) catalyst.

Pyridylidene ligand facilitates gold-catalyzed oxidative C-H arylation of heterocycles

Triaryl-2-pyridylidene effectively facilitates the gold-catalyzed oxidative C-H arylation of heteroarenes with arylsilanes as a unique electron-donating ligand on gold. The employment of the 2-pyridylidene ligand, which is one of the strongest electron-donating N-heterocyclic carbenes, resulted in the rate acceleration of the C-H arylation reaction of heterocycles over conventional ligands such as triphenylphosphine and a classical N-heterocyclic carbene. In situ observation and isolation of the 2-pyridylidene-gold(III) species, as well as a DFT study, indicated unusual stability of gold(III) species stabilized by strong electron donation from the 2-pyridylidene ligand. Thus, the gold(I)-to-gold(III) oxidation process is thought to be facilitated by the highly electron-donating 2-pyridylidene ligand.

Palladium-Catalyzed Desilylative Acyloxylation of Silicon-Carbon Bonds on (Trimethylsilyl)arenes: Synthesis of Phenol Derivatives from Trimethylsilylarenes

A strategy for desilylative acetoxylation of (trimethylsilyl)arenes has been developed in which (trimethylsilyl)arenes are converted into acetoxyarenes. The direct acetoxylation is performed in the presence of 5 mol % of Pd(OAc)2 and PhI(OCOCF3)2 (1.5 equiv) in AcOH at 80 °C for 17 h. The acetoxyarenes are obtained in good to high yields (67-98%). The synthetic utility is demonstrated with a one-pot transformation of (trimethylsilyl)arenes to phenols by successive acetoxylation and hydrolysis. Furthermore, desilylative acyloxylation of 2-(trimethylsilyl)naphthalene using several carboxylic acids has been conducted.

Visible light-mediated gold-catalysed carbon(sp2)-carbon(sp) cross-coupling

A new method for the alkynylation of aryldiazonium salts with TMS-alkynes via dual gold and photoredox catalysis is described.

A dual photoredox and gold-catalysed cross-coupling reaction of alkynyltrimethylsilanes and aryldiazonium tetrafluoroborates is described. The reaction proceeds through visible-light mediated oxidative addition of aryldiazoniums, transmetalation of alkynyltrimethylsilanes and aryl–alkynyl reductive elimination. Exclusive selectivity for silyl-substituted alkynes is observed, with no reactivity observed for terminal alkynes.

Catalytic C-H bond silylation of aromatic heterocycles

This protocol describes a method for the direct silylation of the carbon-hydrogen (C-H) bond of aromatic heterocycles using inexpensive and abundant potassium tert-butoxide (KOt-Bu) as the catalyst. This catalytic cross-dehydrogenative coupling of simple hydrosilanes and various electron-rich aromatic heterocycles enables the synthesis of valuable silylated heteroarenes. The products thus obtained can be used as versatile intermediates, which facilitate the divergent synthesis of pharmaceutically relevant compound libraries from a single Si-containing building block. Moreover, a variety of complex Si-containing motifs, such as those produced by this protocol, are being actively investigated as next-generation therapeutic agents, because they can have improved pharmacokinetic properties compared with the original all-carbon drug molecules. Current competing methods for C-H bond silylation tend to be incompatible with functionalities, such as Lewis-basic heterocycles, that are often found in pharmaceutical substances; this leaves de novo synthesis as the principal strategy for preparation of the target sila-drug analog. Moreover, competing methods tend to be limited in the scope of hydrosilane that can be used, which restricts the breadth of silicon-containing small molecules that can be accessed. The approach outlined in this protocol enables the chemoselective and regioselective late-stage silylation of small heterocycles, including drugs and drug derivatives, with a broad array of hydrosilanes in the absence of precious metal catalysts, stoichiometric reagents, sacrificial hydrogen acceptors or high temperatures. Moreover, H2 is the only by-product generated. The procedure normally requires 48-75 h to be completed.

Iridium-Catalyzed ortho-Arylation of Benzoic Acids with Arenediazonium Salts

In the presence of catalytic [{IrCp*Cl2 }2 ] and Ag2 CO3 , Li2 CO3 as the base, and acetone as the solvent, benzoic acids react with arenediazonium salts to give the corresponding diaryl-2-carboxylates under mild conditions. This C-H arylation process is generally applicable to diversely substituted substrates, ranging from extremely electron-rich to electron-poor derivatives. The carboxylate directing group is widely available and can be removed tracelessly or employed for further derivatization. Orthogonality to halide-based cross-couplings is achieved by the use of diazonium salts, which can be coupled even in the presence of iodo substituents.