The oxidation of adamantane with an iron salen complex modelling ω-hydroxylase

One-Stage Catalytic Oxidation of Adamantane to Tri-, Tetra-, and Penta-Ols

Tertiary tetraols of adamantane (C10H16, Tricyclo[3.3.1.1(3,7)]decan) have been widely used for the synthesis of highly symmetric compounds with unique physical and chemical properties. The methods for one-stage simultaneously selective, deep, and cheap oxidation of adamantane to tetraols of different structures have not yet been developed. In this research, chemically simple, cheap, and environmentally friendly reagents are used and that is the first step in this direction. The conditions, under which the impact of a hydrogen peroxide water solution on adamantane dissolved in acetonitrile results in full conversion of adamantane and formation of a total 72% mixture of its tri-, tetra-, and penta-oxygenated products, predominantly poliols, have been found. Conversion and adamantane oxidation depth are shown to depend on the ratio of components of the water-acetonitrile solution and the method of oxidizer solution introduction when using the dimer form of 1:1 dimethylglyoxime and copper dichloride complex as a catalyst. Under the conditions of mass-spectrometry ionization by electrons (70 eV), fragmentation across three C–C bonds of the molecular ions framework of adamantane tertiary alcohols Ad(OH)n in the range n = 0–4 increases linearly with the rise of n.

Alkane Oxidation: Methane Monooxygenases, Related Enzymes, and Their Biomimetics

Methane monooxygenases (MMOs) mediate the facile conversion of methane into methanol in methanotrophic bacteria with high efficiency under ambient conditions. Because the selective oxidation of methane is extremely challenging, there is considerable interest in understanding how these enzymes carry out this difficult chemistry. The impetus of these efforts is to learn from the microbes to develop a biomimetic catalyst to accomplish the same chemical transformation. Here, we review the progress made over the past two to three decades toward delineating the structures and functions of the catalytic sites in two MMOs: soluble methane monooxygenase (sMMO) and particulate methane monooxygenase (pMMO). sMMO is a water-soluble three-component protein complex consisting of a hydroxylase with a nonheme diiron catalytic site; pMMO is a membrane-bound metalloenzyme with a unique tricopper cluster as the site of hydroxylation. The metal cluster in each of these MMOs harnesses O₂ to functionalize the C-H bond using different chemistry. We highlight some of the common basic principles that they share. Finally, the development of functional models of the catalytic sites of MMOs is described. These efforts have culminated in the first successful biomimetic catalyst capable of efficient methane oxidation without overoxidation at room temperature.

Non-heme μ-Oxo- and bis(μ-carboxylato)-bridged diiron(iii) complexes of a 3N ligand as catalysts for alkane hydroxylation: stereoelectronic factors of carboxylate bridges determine the catalytic efficiency

The stereoelectronic factors of carboxylate bridges in diiron(iii) complexes determine the efficiency of catalytic alkane hydroxylation with m-CPBA.

Synthesis, structure, and catalytic activity of mononuclear iron and (mu-Oxo)diiron complexes with the ligand 2,6-bis(N-methylbenzimidazol-2-yl)pyridine

Iron complexes including polyimidazole and exchangeable ligands are studied with the aim of modeling the structural and functional features of the non-heme iron centers of dinuclear proteins, such as methane monooxygenase. In [Fe(2)OL(2)(MeOH)(2)(NO(3))(2)](NO(3))(2) (1) (L = 2,6-bis(N-methylbenzimidazol-2-yl)pyridine), each Fe(III) is in a distorted octahedral environment and has a donor set of N(3)O(3) which includes three N atoms from L and three O atoms from a nitrate, micro-oxo, and methanol. In complex [FeLCl(3)] (2) (L = 2,6-bis(N-methylbenzimidazol-2-yl)pyridine), Fe(III) is coordinated to three nitrogen atoms from L and three chloride ions. Complex 1 efficiently catalyzed the oxidation of cyclohexane with 51% conversion to cyclohexanol. It also catalyzed the epoxidation of styrene, cyclohexane, 2-methyl-2-butene, and cis- and trans-2-heptene with 51-84% conversions and high selectivity (71-99%) for epoxide products. Complex 2, however, has no specific reactivity toward these substrates. From the alcohol/ketone (A/K) ratio close to 1 in the oxidation of cyclohexane, the low KIE (kinetic isotope effect K(H)/K(D) ratio = 1.8) for cyclohexanol formation, and the nonstereospecificity of the oxidation of cis-dimethylcyclohexane, it can be concluded that long-lived alkyl radicals are involved in the oxidation catalyzed by complex 1. On the other hand, the stereospecific epoxidation of alkenes, the stereoselective oxidation of cumene, and the high degree of retention of configuration in the oxidation of cis- and trans-2-heptene suggest that a nonradical species, probably a metal-based intermediate, is involved in the oxidation of alkenes and cumene.

Enantioselective Sulfoxidation as a Probe for a Metal-Based Mechanism in H(2)O(2)-Dependent Oxidations Catalyzed by a Diiron Complex

The catalytic properties of the diiron complex 1, Fe(2)OL(4)(H(2)O)(2)(ClO(4))(4) with L = (-)-4,5-pinenebipyridine, a chiral bipyridine derivative, have been investigated. Complex 1 efficiently catalyzes the oxidation of aryl sulfides to the corresponding sulfoxides by hydrogen peroxide, with yields ranging from 45 to 90% based on the oxidant. Furthermore the reactions were enantioselective and produced a mixture of sulfoxide enantiomers with significant enantiomeric excesses. The largest ee value (40%) was found in the case of p-bromophenyl methyl sulfide. Optimal ee's were obtained in polar solvents and at low temperature (below 0 degrees C), when the excess of the oxidant was limited. The observation of (i) a saturation kinetics with respect to both sulfide and H(2)O(2) concentrations, (ii) a linear Hammett correlation of the initial V(max) values with sigma(p) values, for a series of p-substituted aryl methyl sulfides, (iii) iron-peroxo complexes, characterized by light absorption and Raman resonance spectroscopies, during reaction of complex 1 with H(2)O(2), and (iv) a saturation kinetics with respect to sulfide during oxidation of sulfide into sulfoxide by the iron-peroxo complexes led us to propose that the iron-peroxo moiety is the actual oxygen atom donor to the substrate, thus explaining the enantioselective control of the catalytic reaction. These data demonstrate that oxidations by non heme diiron complexes can proceed through metal-based pathways and can thus be made stereoselective.