Design, Synthesis, and Application of Polymer-Supported Silicon-Transfer Agents for Cross-Coupling Reactions with Organolithium Reagents

The initial design, synthesis, and validation of polymer-supported siloxane transfer agents have been achieved that permit the direct use of organolithium reagents in the palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions. Through rational design, two generations of polymer support were developed that significantly simplify product purification and the transfer agent recycling.

A Bench-Stable, Single-Component Precatalyst for Silyl-Heck Reactions

Studies of the silyl-Heck reaction aimed at identifying active palladium complexes have revealed a new species that is formed in situ. This complex has been identified as the palladium iodide dimer, [(JessePhos)PdI₂]₂, which has been found to be a competent single-component precatalyst for the silyl-Heck reaction. This complex is easily prepared and is temperature, moisture, and air stable. Additionally, this precatalyst provides higher activity and greater reproducibility compared to previous systems.

Stereoselective Synthesis of Z-Vinylsilanes via Palladium-Catalyzed Direct Intermolecular Silylation of C(sp2)-H Bonds

An efficient and convenient palladium-catalyzed direct intermolecular silylation of C(sp²)-H bonds by using disilanes as the silicon source with the assistance of a readily removable bidentate directing group is reported. This strategy provided a regio- and stereoselective protocol for exclusive synthesis of Z-vinylsilanes with reasonable to excellent yields and good functional group compatibility. Silylation of the isolated palladacycle intermediate revealed the Z-stereoselective pathway. Moreover, the practicality and effectiveness of this method were illustrated by a gram-scale experiment and further functionalization of the silylation product.

Deprotonative Silylation of Aromatic C-H Bonds Mediated by a Combination of Trifluoromethyltrialkylsilane and Fluoride

A method for the deprotonative silylation of aromatic C-H bonds has been developed using trifluoromethyltrimethylsilane (CF₃SiMe₃, Ruppert-Prakash reagent) and a catalytic amount of fluoride. In this reaction, CF₃SiMe₃ is considered to act as a base and a silicon electrophile. This process is highly tolerant to various functional groups on heteroarenes and benzenes. Furthermore, this method can be applied to the synthesis of trimethylsilyl group-containing analogs of TAC-101, which is a bioactive synthetic retinoid with selective affinity for retinoic acid receptor α (RAR-α) binding. We also report further transformations of the silylated products into useful derivatives.

Highly Enantioselective Cobalt-Catalyzed Hydrosilylation of Alkenes

A cobalt-catalyzed highly Markovnikov-type and enantioselective hydrosilylation of alkenes is developed for the efficient synthesis of valuable chiral dihydrosilanes. This protocol is operationally simple and atom-economy, and using relatively simple and readily available starting materials. The reaction is suitable for both aryl and aliphatic alkenes with excellent functional group tolerability. The reaction could be easily carried out in a gram-scale. The TOF and TON is up to 1800 and 860, respectively.

A well-defined NHC-Ir(iii) catalyst for the silylation of aromatic C-H bonds: substrate survey and mechanistic insights

A well-defined NHC-Ir(iii) catalyst provides access to a wide range of aryl- and heteroarylsilanes by intermolecular dehydrogenative C–H bond silylation.

A well-defined NHC–Ir(iii) catalyst, [Ir(H)₂(IPr)(py)₃][BF₄] (IPr = 1,3-bis-(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)imidazol-2-ylidene), that provides access to a wide range of aryl- and heteroaryl-silanes by intermolecular dehydrogenative C–H bond silylation has been prepared and fully characterized. The directed and non-directed functionalisation of C–H bonds has been accomplished successfully using an arene as the limiting reagent and a variety of hydrosilanes in excess, including Et₃SiH, Ph₂MeSiH, PhMe₂SiH, Ph₃SiH and (EtO)₃SiH. Examples that show unexpected selectivity patterns that stem from the presence of aromatic substituents in hydrosilanes are also presented. The selective bisarylation of bis(hydrosilane)s by directed or non-directed silylation of C–H bonds is also reported herein. Theoretical calculations at the DFT level shed light on the intermediate species in the catalytic cycle and the role played by the ligand system on the Ir(iii)/Ir(i) mechanism.

Structural diversification of the aminobicyclo[4.3.0]nonane skeleton using alkynylsilyl-derived allylic trichloroacetimidates

The amino substituted bicyclo[4.3.0]nonane is a molecular scaffold found in a wide range of natural products and medicinal agents. Despite this, synthetic methods for the general preparation of this structural motif are sparse. Here we evaluate a diastereoselective approach for the preparation of vinylsilyl derived aminobicyclo[4.3.0]nonanes using a one-pot multi-bond forming process involving a Pd(ii)-catalysed Overman rearrangement, a Ru(ii)-catalysed ring closing enyne metathesis reaction, followed by a hydrogen bonding directed Diels-Alder reaction. We show that a benzyldimethylsilyl-substituted alkene analogue is amenable to further functionalisation and the late stage generation of diverse sp³-rich, drug-like aminobicyclo[4.3.0]nonane scaffolds with up to six stereogenic centres.

Highly chemoselective ruthenium(ii)-catalyzed direct arylation of cyclic and N,N-dialkyl benzamides with aryl silanes

The ruthenium(ii)-catalyzed oxidative cross-coupling of C(sp2)-H bonds with organosilanes has been accomplished for the first time. This novel protocol enlists challenging cyclic and N,N-dialkyl benzamides as weakly-coordinating substrates to achieve highly regioselective C(sp2)-H arylation as a proof-of-concept, taking advantage of the attractive features of organosilanes as coupling partners. This innovative method is characterized by very high chemoselectivity, installing halide functional groups (I, Br, Cl) that are incompatible with Ru(ii)-carboxylate systems employing halides as cross-coupling partners, while obviating the need for sensitive organometallic reagents and cryogenic temperatures typical to the classic directed-ortho-metallation (DoM) techniques, employing benzamides to afford bioactive structural motifs.

Asymmetric Copper Hydride-Catalyzed Markovnikov Hydrosilylation of Vinylarenes and Vinyl Heterocycles

We report a highly enantioselective CuH-catalyzed Markovnikov hydrosilylation of vinylarenes and vinyl heterocycles. This method has a broad scope and enables both the synthesis of isolable silanes and the conversion of crude products to chiral alcohols. Density functional theory calculations support a mechanism proceeding by hydrocupration followed by σ-bond metathesis with a hydrosilane.

Pd-mediated cross-coupling of C-17 lithiated androst-16-en-3-ol – access to functionalized arylated steroid derivatives

Herein, we report on Pd-mediated cross-coupling of vinyllithium steroids and aryl bromides to introduce various substituted aryls at C-17 of steroidal frameworks based on the structure of epi-androsterone.

Rhodium(iii)-catalyzed directed C–H benzylation and allylation of indoles with organosilicon reagents

Rhodium(iii)-catalyzed C2-benzylation and allylation of indoles with organosilicon reagents via chelation-assisted C–H activation has been developed.

Iridium-catalyzed intermolecular directed dehydrogenative ortho C–H silylation

An efficient method for iridium-catalyzed direct silylation of C(sp²)–H and C(sp³)–H bonds using HSiMe(OSiMe₃)₂ as the silylating reagent is described.

Pincer cobalt complex-catalyzed Z-selective hydrosilylation of terminal alkynes

Co-Catalyzed Z-selective hydrosilylation of terminal alkynes produces (Z)-β-vinylsilanes, which are further converted to (Z)-disubstituted alkenes by Pd-catalyzed cross couplings.

Identifying a cobalt catalyst for highly selective hydrosilylation of allenes

An efficient method of cobalt-catalyzed allene-hydrosilylation is developed. The less-substituted CC bond was reacted and the reaction demonstrated Z-stereoselectivity.

Direct arylation of inactivated benzene with aryl acyl peroxides toward biaryls

A direct arylation of inactivated benzene with acyl peroxides toward biaryls under metal-free, base-free and additive-free conditions was developed.

Ruthenium(ii)-catalyzed ortho-C–H arylation of diverse N-heterocycles with aryl silanes by exploiting solvent-controlled N-coordination

We report the first method for the direct, regioselective Ru(ii)-catalyzed oxidative arylation of C–H bonds in diverse N-heterocycles with aryl silanes by exploiting solvent-controlled N-coordination.

Ar–P bond construction by the Pd-catalyzed oxidative cross-coupling of arylsilanes with H-phosphonates via C–Si bond cleavage

A novel and efficient methodology that allows for the construction of Ar–P bonds via the Pd-catalyzed oxidative cross-coupling reaction of various arylsilanes with H-phosphonates leading to valuable arylphosphonates has been developed.

Cooperative redox activation for carbon dioxide conversion

A longstanding challenge in production chemistry is the development of catalytic methods for the transformation of carbon dioxide into useful chemicals. Silane and borane promoted reductions can be fined-tuned to provide a number of C1-building blocks under mild conditions, but these approaches are limited because of the production of stoichiometric waste compounds. Here we report on the conversion of CO₂ with diaryldisilanes, which through cooperative redox activation generate carbon monoxide and a diaryldisiloxane that actively participate in a palladium-catalysed carbonylative Hiyama-Denmark coupling for the synthesis of an array of pharmaceutically relevant diarylketones. Thus the disilane reagent not only serves as the oxygen abstracting agent from CO₂, but the silicon-containing ‘waste', produced through oxygen insertion into the Si–Si bond, participates as a reagent for the transmetalation step in the carbonylative coupling. Hence this concept of cooperative redox activation opens up for new avenues in the conversion of CO₂.

While CO₂ can be converted to CO for further reactivity, typically this involves the generation of large amounts of waste. Here the authors report the conversion of CO₂ to CO, with the siloxane by-product being further used in a carbonylative Hiyama-Denmark coupling to form diarylketones.

Palladium-Catalyzed Transformations of Alkyl C-H Bonds

This Review summarizes the advancements in Pd-catalyzed C(sp³)-H activation via various redox manifolds, including Pd(0)/Pd(II), Pd(II)/Pd(IV), and Pd(II)/Pd(0). While few examples have been reported in the activation of alkane C-H bonds, many C(sp³)-H activation/C-C and C-heteroatom bond forming reactions have been developed by the use of directing group strategies to control regioselectivity and build structural patterns for synthetic chemistry. A number of mono- and bidentate ligands have also proven to be effective for accelerating C(sp³)-H activation directed by weakly coordinating auxiliaries, which provides great opportunities to control reactivity and selectivity (including enantioselectivity) in Pd-catalyzed C-H functionalization reactions.

Pd-Catalyzed Suzuki-Miyaura and Hiyama-Denmark Couplings of Aryl Sulfamates

Using a recently discovered precatalyst, the first Pd-catalyzed Suzuki-Miyaura reactions using aryl sulfamates that occur at room temperature are reported. In complementary work, it is demonstrated that a related precatalyst can facilitate the coupling of aryl silanolates, which are less toxic and reactive nucleophiles than boronic acids with aryl chlorides. By combining our results using modern electrophiles and nucleophiles, the first Hiyama-Denmark reactions using aryl sulfamates are reported.

Regio- and Stereoselective Dehydrogenative Silylation and Hydrosilylation of Vinylarenes Catalyzed by Ruthenium Alkylidenes

Development of regio- and stereoselective dehydrogenative silylation and hydrosilylation of vinylarenes with alkoxysilanes, catalyzed by ruthenium alkylidenes, is described. Varying L- and X-type ligands on ruthenium alkylidenes permits selective access to either (E)-vinylsilanes or β-alkylsilanes with high regio- and stereocontrol. cis,cis-1,5-Cyclooctadiene was identified as the most effective sacrificial hydrogen acceptor for the dehydrogenative silylation of vinylarenes, which allows use of a nearly equimolar ratio of alkenes and silanes.

Decarbonylative Silylation of Esters by Combined Nickel and Copper Catalysis for the Synthesis of Arylsilanes and Heteroarylsilanes

An efficient nickel/copper-catalyzed decarbonylative silylation reaction of carboxylic acid esters with silylboranes is described. This reaction provides access to structurally diverse silanes with high efficiency and excellent functional-group tolerance starting from readily available esters.