A New Copper(I)–Tetrahydrosalen-Catalyzed Asymmetric Henry Reaction and Its Extension to the Synthesis of (S)-Norphenylephrine

The use of metal-organic frameworks as heterogeneous catalysts

This article presents an overview of some of the available research studies of MOFs as catalysts. Catalytic studies of magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles with modified surfaces, MOFs with precious metals such as palladium, platinum, and silver, with zirconium, hafnium, copper, alkaline earth metals, lanthanides are generalized. The studies of the catalytic activity of micro- and mesoporous MOF structures are described.

Basified Graphene Oxide and PPO Composite Aerogel with Basified Graphene Oxide for Henry Reaction in Solvent-Free Conditions: A Green Approach

Novel basified graphene oxide and high-porosity monolithic composite aerogels of poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4-phenylene oxide) (PPO) containing basified graphene oxide (b-eGO) have been prepared as recoverable and reusable catalysts for the Henry reaction in solvent-free conditions at room temperature. The results showed that, although b-eGO was able to promote the reaction, it suffered from reduced stability. On the other hand, PPO/b-eGO aerogels were able to efficiently promote the Henry reaction in solvent-free conditions. The product could be obtained pure without a purification step, and the catalyst was stable for over 15 months and could be easily recycled without losing catalytic efficiency. The stereochemical outcome was further investigated in the presence of PPO/b-eGO. Despite its negligible influence on diastereoselectivity, better efficiency and a sensible reduction of reaction time were observed.

Asymmetric Henry Reaction of Nitromethane with Substituted Aldehydes Catalyzed by Novel In Situ Generated Chiral Bis(β-Amino Alcohol-Cu(OAc)2·H2O Complex

Novel chiral thiophene-2,5-bis(β-amino alcohol) ligands (L1–L5) were designed and synthesized from thiophene-2,5-dicarbaldehyde (3) with chiral β-amino alcohols (4a–e) in 4 steps with overall 23% yields. An in situ generated L-Cu(OAc)2·H2O catalyst system was found to be highly capable catalyst for the asymmetric Henry reaction of nitromethane (7) with various substituted aromatic aldehydes (6a–m) producing chiral nitroaldols product (8a–m) with excellent enantiomeric purity (up to 94.6% ee) and up to >99% chemical yields. 20 mol% of L4-Cu(OAc)2 catalyst complex in EtOH was effective for the asymmetric Henry transformation in 24 h, at ambient temperature. Ease of ligand synthesis, use of green solvent, base free reaction, mild reaction conditions, high yields and excellent enantioselectivity are all key factors that make this catalytic system robust and highly desirable for the access of versatile building block β-nitro alcohol in practical catalytic usage via asymmetric Henry reaction.

Enantioselective Henry Reaction Catalyzed by Copper(II) Complex of Bis(trans-cyclohexane-1,2-diamine)-Based Ligand

Copper(II) complex of the ligand possessing two enantiomerically pure trans-cyclohexane-1,2-diamine units proved to be an efficient catalyst for the enantioselective Henry reaction of aromatic aldehydes with nitromethane. The effect of various reaction conditions on yield and enantioselectivity of the Henry reaction was studied. The results suggest that only one cyclohexane-1,2-diamine unit is involved in catalysis of the Henry reaction.

Unusual chemistry of Cu(ii) salan complexes: synthesis, characterization and superoxide dismutase activity

Cu(ii)-salan complexes: structural and spectral characterization, solvent assisted ring cleavage and correlation of superoxide dismutase activity with cyclic voltammetry data and steric effects.

Henry Reaction Revisited. Crucial Role of Water in an Asymmetric Henry Reaction Catalyzed by Chiral NNO-Type Copper(II) Complexes

Chiral copper(II) and cobalt(III) complexes (1-5 and 6, respectively) derived from Schiff bases of (S)-2-(aminomethyl)pyrrolidine and salicylaldehyde derivatives were employed in a mechanistic study of the Henry reaction-type condensation of nitromethane and o-nitrobenzaldehyde in CH₂Cl₂ (CD₂Cl₂), containing different amounts of water. The reaction kinetics was monitored by ¹H and ¹³C NMR. The addition of water had a different influence on the activity of the two types of complexes, ranging from a crucial positive effect in the case of the copper(II) complex 2 to insignificant in the case of the stereochemically inert cobalt(III) complex 6. No experimental support was found by ¹H NMR studies for the classical Lewis acid complexation of the carbonyl group of the aldehyde by the central copper(II) ion, and, moreover, density functional theory (DFT) calculations support the absence of such coordination. On the other hand, a very significant complexation was found for water, and it was supported by DFT calculations. In fact, we suggest that it is the Brønsted acidity of the water molecule coordinated to the metal ion that triggers the aldehyde activation. The rate-limiting step of the reaction was the removal of an α-proton from the nitromethane molecule, as supported by the observed kinetic isotope effect equaling 6.3 in the case of the copper complex 2. It was found by high-resolution mass spectrometry with electrospray ionization that the copper(II) complex 2 existed in CH₂Cl₂ in a dimeric form. The reaction had a second-order dependence on the catalyst concentration, which implicated two dimeric forms of the copper(II) complex 2 in the rate-limiting step. Furthermore, DFT calculations help to generate a plausible structure of the stereodetermining transition step of the condensation.

Photothermal conversion triggered thermal asymmetric catalysis within metal nanoparticles loaded homochiral covalent organic framework

For seeking high enantiopurity, the previously reported thermal asymmetric catalysis is usually carried out at low temperature sometimes with limited yield, that is, the high enantiomeric excess (ee) usually at the cost of high yield. Thus, the achieving both high stereoselectivity and yield is an enormous challenge. We report herein two metal nanoparticle (M NP)-loaded and porphyrin-containing homochiral covalent organic framework (CCOF)-based composite catalysts, and their application in the thermally-driven asymmetric one-pot Henry and A³-coupling reactions. All the reactions are conducted at elevated temperatures with both excellent stereoselectivity and yield which resulted from the synergy of CCOF confinement effect and M NP catalytic activation. Notably, the needed thermal energy for the asymmetric reactions herein is derived from the photothermal conversion via porphyrin-based CCOF upon irradiation with visible light. Remarkably, the CCOF confinement effect can be effectively maintained up to 100 °C for the asymmetric one-pot Henry and A³-coupling reactions herein.

Achieving both high stereoselectivity and yield is a challenge for conventional asymmetric catalysis. Here, the authors report two metal nanoparticle-loaded and porphyrin-containing homochiral covalent organic framework-based composite catalysts that exhibit high stereoselectivity and yield in the thermally-driven asymmetric reactions.

Enhanced Activity and Enantioselectivity of Henry Reaction by the Postsynthetic Reduction Modification for a Chiral Cu(salen)-Based Metal-Organic Framework

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) imbedded privileged molecular catalysts are of particular interest due to their higher catalytic activities derived from the MOFs pore/channel confinement effect, improved lifetime through eliminating intermolecular deactivation pathway, and the recyclability based on their heterogeneity. In this work, a 3D chiral metallosalen-based MOF [Cd₂(Cu(salen))(DMF)₃]·DMF·3H₂O (1) with a 1D open channel was synthesized and characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction and other physicochemical methods. Upon postsynthetic reduction modification with NaBH₄, the conversion from imino to amino group on salen cores of 1 generates the reduction product 2 with a more flexible chiral group and more alkaline backbone, meanwhile still maintaining the original porous framework. 2 can be used as an efficient heterogeneous catalyst for the asymmetric Henry reaction with broad substrate applicability and exhibits higher activity and enantioselectivity (ee up to 98%) compared with the unreduced 1. Note that 2 can accelerate the Henry reaction of pyridine-2-carboxaldehyde possessing a potential coordination atom with excellent ee value; however, the homogeneous counterpart does not. In addition, the bulky aldehydes show a decrease in activity but almost the same enantioselectivity with an increase in the molecular size of substrates as a result of the chiral confinement effect of 2, indicating the size-dependent selectivity. To the best of our knowledge, this is the highest enantioselectivity for asymmetric Henry reaction catalyzed by MOF-based catalysts.

Hierarchically porous metal–organic frameworks with single-crystal structures and their enhanced catalytic properties

Stable hierarchically porous metal–organic frameworks (HP-MOFs) have been successfully synthesized under hydrothermal conditions using a template strategy.

Copper-Catalyzed Enantioselective Henry Reaction of β,γ-Unsaturated α-Ketoesters with Nitromethane in Water

A highly enantioselective Henry reaction of β,γ-unsaturated α-ketoesters with nitromethane in water by virtue of chiral copper complexes has been developed. A series of unsaturated β-nitro-α-hydroxy esters bearing tetrasubstituted carbon stereocenters were obtained exclusively with high yields and excellent enantioselectivities. This method could avoid tedious anaerobic anhydrous manipulation and reduce the environmental pollution caused by organic solvents.

A NbO type Cu(ii) metal-organic framework showing efficient catalytic activity in the Friedländer and Henry reactions

A three-dimensional NbO type porous metal-organic framework 1 containing both tertiary amine groups and paddle wheel dinuclear Cu₂(COO)₄ secondary building units as the active centre was synthesized at room temperature. The activated framework 1' can be used as an efficient heterogeneous catalyst for the synthesis of quinoline derivatives by the Friedländer reaction and for the synthesis of β-nitroalcohols by the Henry (nitroaldol) reaction. This MOF-based heterogeneous catalyst is easily recycled and reused further without losing its structural integrity and catalytic activity.

cis-2,5-Diaminobicyclo[2.2.2]octane, a New Chiral Scaffold for Asymmetric Catalysis

Catalysis of widely used chemical transformations in which the goal is to obtain the product as a pure enantiomer has become a major preoccupation of synthetic organic chemistry over the past three decades. A large number of chiral entities has been deployed to this end, many with considerable success, but one of the simplest and most effective catalytic systems to have emerged from this effort is that based on a chiral diamine, specifically trans-1,2-diaminocyclohexane. While there have been attempts to improve upon this scaffold in asymmetric synthesis, few have gained the recognition needed to take their place alongside this classic diamine. The challenge is to design a scaffold that retains the assets of trans-1,2-diaminocyclohexane while enhancing its intrinsic chirality and maximizing the scope of its applications. It occurred to us that cis-2,5-diaminobicyclo[2.2.2]octane could be such a scaffold. Synthesis of this diamine in enantiopure form was completed from benzoic acid, and the (1R,2R,4R,5R) enantiomer was used in all subsequent experiments in this laboratory. Condensation of the diamine with various salicyl aldehydes generated imine derivatives which proved to be excellent "salen" ligands for encapsulation of transition and other metals. In total, 12 salen-metal complexes were prepared from this ligand, many of which were crystalline and three of which, along with the ligand itself, yielded to X-ray crystallography. An advantage of this ligand is that it can be tuned sterically or electronically to confer specific catalytic properties on the salen-metal complex, and this feature was used in several applications of our salen-metal complexes in asymmetric synthesis. Thus, replacement of one of the tert-butyl groups in each benzenoid ring of the salen ligand by a methoxy substituent enhanced the catalytic efficiency of a cobalt(II)-salen complex used in asymmetric cyclopropanation of 1,1-disubstituted alkenes; the catalyst was employed in an improved synthesis of the cyclopropane-containing drug candidate Synosutine. Reduction of the pair of imine functions of the ligand to secondary amines permitted formation of a copper(I)-salen complex that catalyzed asymmetric Henry ("nitroaldol") condensation with excellent efficiency; this catalyst was applied in an economical synthesis of three drugs of the "beta-blocker" family including (S)-Propanolol. Chromium(II) and chromium(III) complexes were prepared from our bicyclooctane-salen ligand bearing a pair of tert-butyl groups in each benzenoid ring. These complexes were found to catalyze, respectively, enantioselective formation of homoallylic alcohols from Nozaki-Hiyama-Kishi allylation of aromatic aldehydes and dihydropyranones from hetero-Diels-Alder cycloaddition. Plausible reaction models emerging from knowledge of the absolute configuration of products from each of these reactions place the metal-coordinated substrate in a quadrant beneath the bicyclooctane scaffold so that one face of the substrate is blocked by an aryl ring of the salen ligand while the opposite face is left open to attack. The consistent and predictable stereochemical outcome from reactions catalyzed by salen-metal complexes derived from our diaminobicyclo[2.2.2]octane scaffold adds a valuable new dimension to asymmetric synthesis.

Silver comes into play: Henry reaction and domino cycloisomerisation sequence catalysed by [Ag(i)(Pc-L)] complexes

The Ag(i) complexes of pyridine-containing ligands with an active pendant arm are new catalysts for an old reaction: the nitroaldol condensation. When the substrates are 2-alkynylarylaldehydes, a smart cascade cycloisomerisation process can occur.

Design for carbon–carbon bond forming reactions under ambient conditions

The carbon–carbon (C–C) bond forms the ‘backbone’ of nearly every organic molecule, and lies at the heart of the chemical sciences! Let us explore designing of carbon–carbon frameworks at ambient conditions.

Co–salen complexes as catalysts for the asymmetric Henry reaction – reversed enantioselectivity through simple ligand modification

Derivatives of Co-salen catalysts were tested in the asymmetric Henry reaction. Cyclic oligomers displayed a higher catalytic activity than their monomeric counterparts, and reduced Schiff-base versions showed a reversed enantioselectivity.

Chiral modification of copper exchanged zeolite-Y with cinchonidine and its application in the asymmetric Henry reaction

(−)-Cinchonidine is being encapsulated inside copper exchanged zeolite-Y and used as heterogeneous catalyst for the asymmetric Henry reaction.