Transition-Metal-Free Coupling of Polyfluorinated Arenes and Functionalized, Masked Aryl Nucleophiles

Speciation and kinetics of fluoride transfer from tetra-n-butylammonium difluorotriphenylsilicate ('TBAT')

Tetra-n-butylammonium difluorotriphenylsilicate (TBAT) is a conveniently handled anhydrous fluoride source, commonly used as a surrogate for tetra-n-butylammonium fluoride (TBAF). While prior studies indicate that TBAT reacts rapidly with fluoride acceptors, little is known about the mechanism(s) of fluoride transfer. We report on the interrogation of the kinetics of three processes in which fluoride is transferred from TBAT, in THF and in MeCN, using a variety of NMR methods, including chemical exchange saturation transfer, magnetisation transfer, diffusion analysis, and 1D NOESY. These studies reveal ion-pairing between the tetra-n-butylammonium and difluorotriphenylsilicate moieties, and a very low but detectable degree of fluoride dissociation, which then undergoes further equilibria and/or induces decomposition, depending on the conditions. Degenerate exchange between TBAT and fluorotriphenylsilane (FTPS) is very rapid in THF, inherently increases in rate over time, and is profoundly sensitive to the presence of water. Addition of 2,6-di-tert-butylpyridine and 3 Å molecular sieves stabilises the exchange rate, and both dissociative and direct fluoride transfer are shown to proceed in parallel under these conditions. Degenerate exchange between TBAT and 2-naphthalenyl fluorosulfate (ARSF) is not detected at the NMR timescale in THF, and is slow in MeCN. For the latter, the exchange is near-fully inhibited by exogenous FTPS, indicating a predominantly dissociative character to this exchange process. Fluorination of benzyl bromide (BzBr) with TBAT in MeCN-d3 exhibits moderate progressive autoinhibition, and the initial rate of the reaction is supressed by the presence of exogenous FTPS. Overall, TBAT can act as a genuine surrogate for TBAF, as well as a reservoir for rapidly-reversible release of traces of it, with the relative contribution of the pathways depending, inter alia, on the identity of the fluoride acceptor, the solvent, and the concentration of endogenous or exogenous FTPS.

Synthetic Advantages of Defluorinative C-F Bond Functionalization

Much progress has been made in the development of methods to both create compounds that contain C-F bonds and to functionalize C-F bonds. As such, C-F bonds are becoming common and versatile synthetic functional handles. This review summarizes the advantages of defluorinative functionalization reactions for small molecule synthesis. The coverage is organized by the type of carbon framework the fluorine is attached to for mono- and polyfluorinated motifs. The main challenges, opportunities and advances of defluorinative functionalization are discussed for each class of organofluorine. Most of the text focuses on case studies that illustrate how defluorofunctionalization can improve routes to synthetic targets or how the properties of C-F bonds enable unique mechanisms and reactions. The broader goal is to showcase the opportunities for incorporating and exploiting C-F bonds in the design of synthetic routes, improvement of specific reactions and advent of new methods.

Bond-Forming Processes Enabled by Silicon-Masked Aryl- and Alkyl-Substituted Diazenes

Aryl- and alkyldiimides (R-N═NH with R = aryl or alkyl) are elusive intermediates of valuable synthetic use, as they are assumed to be transient species in processes involving both carbon (with concomitant loss of N2) and nitrogen nucleophiles (with conservation of the N═N moiety). The actual compounds are fragile and as such not bench stable which is why they have not yet found the attention they deserve. Conversely, early contributions showed that the stability of the parent diimide is significantly increased by replacing the hydrogen atom by a silyl group, but the synthetic applicability of these silicon-protected aryl- and alkyldiazenes has been far less explored, in part due to the absence of general procedures for their preparation. This Perspective provides an overview of the underexplored diazene chemistry that has witnessed considerable progress in recent years and highlights the potential of this motif in a range of synthetically useful (catalytic) transformations. The rediscovered silicon-masked diazenes constitute a versatile platform possessing enhanced stability and tamed reactivity in comparison to the parent hydrogen-substituted diimides. Aryl, diazenyl, and alkyl anionic key intermediates can be selectively generated in situ under Lewis base or transition metal catalysis, giving rise to novel synthetic approaches as viable alternatives to the already existing methodologies.

Direct C(sp3)-H Polyfluoroarylation: Access to Polyfluoroaryl Amino Acids via Rh-Catalyzed Selective C-F Bond Cleavage

A catalytic selective C-F bond alkylation method for polyfluoroarene with glycinates and derivatives in the presence of a DavePhos-ligated Rh catalyst was developed. This method avoids the preactivation of alkylating reagents and provides an efficient and straightforward route to synthesize a series of polyfluoroaryl amino acids via C(sp³)-H functionalization. This reaction proceeds under mild conditions and exhibits high reactivity and excellent chemoselectivities. Meanwhile, the synthetic potential of this method was demonstrated by gram-scale synthesis, and further transformations proved the application value of the products as well.

Synthesis of Non-Symmetric Azoarenes by Palladium-Catalyzed Cross-Coupling of Silicon-Masked Diazenyl Anions and (Hetero)Aryl Halides

The photoswitchable motif of azobenzenes is of great importance across the life and materials sciences. This maintains a constant demand for their efficient synthesis, especially that of non-symmetric derivatives. We disclose here a general strategy for their synthesis through an unprecedented C(sp² )-N(sp² ) cross-coupling where functionalized aryl-substituted diazenes masked with a silyl group are employed as diazenyl pronucleophiles. These equivalents of fragile diazenyl anions couple with a diverse set of (hetero)aryl bromides under palladium catalysis with no loss of dinitrogen. The competing denitrogenative biaryl formation is fully suppressed. The reaction requires only a minimal excess, that is 1.2 equivalents, of the diazenyl component. By this, a broad range of azoarenes decorated with two electron-rich/deficient aryl groups can be accessed in a predictable way with superb functional-group tolerance.

Nucleophilic aromatic substitution of non-activated aryl fluorides with aliphatic amides

Nucleophilic aromatic substitution (S_NAr) reactions of non-activated aryl fluorides with amide enolates are reported. The reaction proceeds under relatively mild reaction conditions. Lactams also participate in the reaction to give 2-arylated lactams. DFT calculations suggest that the reaction proceeds through a concerted S_NAr pathway.

Regioselective and late-stage polyfluoroarylation of arenes with diverse fluoroaryl nucleophiles via Pd-catalysis

Dehydrogenative coupling of arenes with fluoroaryl nucleophiles enables the efficient synthesis of fluoroaromatic compounds from readily available starting materials.

Transition-Metal-Free Coupling of Polyfluorinated Arenes and Functionalized, Masked Aryl Nucleophiles

A chemoselective C(sp²)−C(sp²) coupling of sufficiently electron‐deficient fluorinated arenes and functionalized N‐aryl‐N’‐silyldiazenes as masked aryl nucleophiles is reported. The fluoride‐promoted transformation involves the in situ generation of the aryl nucleophile decorated with various sensitive functional groups followed by a stepwise nucleophilic aromatic substitution (S_NAr). These reactions typically proceed at room temperature within minutes. This catalytic process allows for the functionalization of both coupling partners, furnishing highly fluorinated biaryls in good yields.