Supramolecular Catalyst for Aldehyde Hydrogenation and Tandem Hydroformylation-Hydrogenation

Catalytic Hydrogenation of Epoxides to Alcohols

Atom-economical catalytic reactions are a highly enticing strategy because all atoms of the starting materials are incorporated into the products. Catalytic hydrogenation of epoxides to alcohols is an attractive and alternative protocol to other synthetic methodologies for the synthesis of alcohols from alkenes. In the last two decades, catalytic hydrogenation of epoxides to alcohols has made remarkable progress in chemical synthesis. In this review, an overview of the catalytic hydrogenation of both terminal and internal epoxides to the corresponding alcohols is presented. An outline of both homogeneous and heterogeneous hydrogenation of epoxides to the corresponding alcohols is provided. Moreover, the selectivity, efficiency, and the reaction mechanisms of these epoxide hydrogenation reactions are highlighted.

Transient Directing Groups in Metal-Organic Cooperative Catalysis

The direct functionalization of C-H bonds is among the most fundamental chemical transformations in organic synthesis. However, when the innate reactivity of the substrate cannot be utilized for the functionalization of a given single C-H bond, this selective C-H bond functionalization mostly relies on the use of directing groups that allow bringing the catalyst in close proximity to the C-H bond to be activated and these directing groups need to be installed before and cleaved after the transformation, which involves two additional undesired synthetic operations. These additional steps dramatically reduce the overall impact and the attractiveness of C-H bond functionalization techniques since classical approaches based on substrate pre-functionalization are sometimes still more straightforward and appealing. During the past decade, a different approach involving both the in situ installation and removal of the directing group, which can then often be used in a catalytic manner, has emerged: the transient directing group strategy. In addition to its innovative character, this strategy has brought C-H bond functionalization to an unprecedented level of usefulness and has enabled the development of remarkably efficient processes for the direct and selective introduction of functional groups onto both aromatic and aliphatic substrates. The processes unlocked by the development of these transient directing groups will be comprehensively overviewed in this review article.

Continuous Flow Preferential Hydrogenation of an Octanal/Octene Mixture Using Cu/Al2O3 Catalysts

γ-Alumina-supported catalysts with varying copper loadings (5-25 wt %) were prepared by incipient wet impregnation and characterized by various characterization techniques. These catalysts were tested for the selective hydrogenation of octanal in a mixture containing 10 wt % octanal and 2 wt % octene diluted in octanol. The reactions were carried out in a continuous flow fixed-bed reactor in a down flow mode with varying pressures, liquid hourly space velocities, and hydrogen (H₂)-to-aldehyde molar ratios. The catalyst activities were assessed over a temperature range between 100 and 180 °C using hydrogen gas as the hydrogen source. The results obtained showed that under these experimental conditions, copper preferentially hydrogenates the aldehyde and the copper content exhibited no significant influence on the catalyst activity or product selectivity. Kinetic modeling revealed that both octanal and octene hydrogenation were first-order reactions, although octene conversion was very low until octanal conversion had reached a significant level. The activation energy for octanal hydrogenation is higher than the octene hydrogenation. A maximum octanal conversion of >99% was obtained at 160 °C, and the best selectivity toward octanol of 99% was achieved at 100 °C (53% conversion). The pressure played a small role with regards to octanal conversion and selectivity toward octanol, whereas it exhibited a significant influence on the octene conversion. Increasing the hydrogen-to-aldehyde ratio was found to have a direct influence on both octanal and octene conversion.

Hydroformylation of Alkenes in a Planetary Ball Mill: From Additive-Controlled Reactivity to Supramolecular Control of Regioselectivity

The Rh-catalyzed hydroformylation of aromatic-substituted alkenes is performed in a planetary ball mill under CO/H₂ pressure. The dispersion of the substrate molecules and the Rh-catalyst into the grinding jar is ensured by saccharides: methyl-α-d-glucopyranoside, acyclic dextrins, or cyclodextrins (CDs, cyclic oligosaccharides). The reaction affords the exclusive formation of aldehydes whatever the saccharide. Acyclic saccharides disperse the components within the solid mixture leading to high conversions of alkenes. However, they showed typical selectivity for α-aldehyde products. If CDs are the dispersing additive, the steric hindrance exerted by the CDs on the primary coordination sphere of the metal modifies the selectivity so that the β-aldehydes were also formed in non-negligible proportions. Such through-space control via hydrophobic effects over reactivity and regioselectivity reveals the potential of such solventless process for catalysis in solid state.

Riding the Wave of Monodentate Ligand Revival: From the A/B Concept to Noncovalent Interactions

The rediscovery of chiral monodentate ligands made in the period 1999-2003 had important consequences in enantioselective transition-metal catalysis, such as the introduction of the A/B concept (i.e., use of monodentate ligand mixtures) and, later, a renewed interest in supramolecular ligands capable of ligand-ligand and ligand-substrate interactions. This Personal Account summarizes the contributions made by our research group in this area in the period 2004-2015, which reflect the abovementioned developments. Within this area, we introduced some original concepts, such as 1) the use of chiral tropos ligand mixtures; 2) the development of new strategies to maximize heterocomplex formation from combinations of simple monodentate ligands; 3) the investigation of new ligand-ligand interactions to achieve selective heterocomplex formation; and 4) the development of highly efficient and synthetically accessible supramolecular ligands.

Highly Efficient and Selective Hydrogenation of Aldehydes: A Well-Defined Fe(II) Catalyst Exhibits Noble-Metal Activity

The synthesis and application of [Fe(PNPMe-iPr)(CO)(H)(Br)] and [Fe(PNPMe-iPr)(H)2(CO)] as catalysts for the homogeneous hydrogenation of aldehydes is described. These systems were found to be among the most efficient catalysts for this process reported to date and constitute rare examples of a catalytic process which allows selective reduction of aldehydes in the presence of ketones and other reducible functionalities. In some cases, TONs and TOFs of up to 80000 and 20000 h-1, respectively, were reached. On the basis of stoichiometric experiments and computational studies, a mechanism which proceeds via a trans-dihydride intermediate is proposed. The structure of the hydride complexes was also confirmed by X-ray crystallography.

Paraformaldehyde and methanol as C1 feedstocks in metal-catalyzed C-C couplings of π-unsaturated reactants: beyond hydroformylation

Ruthenium-catalyzed reductive couplings of paraformaldehyde with dienes, alkynes, and allenes provide access to products of hydrohydroxymethylation that cannot be formed selectively under the conditions of hydroformylation. In certain cases, the regioselectivity of the CC coupling can be inverted by using nickel catalysts. With iridium catalysts, methanol engages in redox-neutral regioselective hydrohydroxymethylations.

The N-H functional group in organometallic catalysis

The organometallic approach is one of the most active topics in catalysis. The application of NH functionality in organometallic catalysis has become an important and attractive concept in catalyst design. NH moieties in the modifiers of organometallic catalysts have been shown to have various beneficial functions in catalysis by molecular recognition through hydrogen bonding to give catalyst-substrate, ligand-ligand, ligand-catalyst, and catalyst-catalyst interactions. This Review summarizes recent progress in the development of the organometallic catalysts based on the concept of cooperative catalysis by focusing on the NH moiety.

Rhodium-catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation of olefins with PhthalaPhos, a new class of chiral supramolecular ligands

A library of 19 binol-derived chiral monophosphites that contain a phthalic acid diamide group (PhthalaPhos) has been designed and synthesized in four steps. These new ligands were screened in the rhodium-catalyzed enantioselective hydrogenation of prochiral dehydroamino esters and enamides. Several members of the library showed excellent enantioselectivity with methyl 2-acetamido acrylate (6 ligands gave >97% ee), methyl (Z)-2-acetamido cinnamate (6 ligands gave >94% ee), and N-(1-phenylvinyl)acetamide (9 ligands gave >95% ee), whilst only a few representatives afforded high enantioselectivities for challenging and industrially relevant substrates N-(3,4-dihydronaphthalen-1-yl)-acetamide (96% ee in one case) and methyl (E)-2-(acetamidomethyl)-3-phenylacrylate (99% ee in one case). In most cases, the new ligands were more active and more stereoselective than their structurally related monodentate phosphites (which are devoid of functional groups that are capable of hydrogen-bonding interactions). Control experiments and kinetic studies were carried out that allowed us to demonstrate that hydrogen-bonding interactions involving the diamide group of the PhthalaPhos ligands strongly contribute to their outstanding catalytic properties. Computational studies carried out on a rhodium precatalyst and on a conceivable intermediate in the hydrogenation catalytic cycle shed some light on the role played by hydrogen bonding, which is likely to act in a substrate-orientation effect.