Highly efficient direct a larger-scale aldol reactions catalyzed by a flexible prolinamide based-metal Lewis acid bifunctional catalyst in the presence of water

Y(OTf)3-Salazin-Catalyzed Asymmetric Aldol Condensation

The chiral aziridine-containing vicinal iminophenol tridentate ligands (named salazins) are a class of readily prepared chiral ligands from enantiopure aziridines and salicylaldehydes. Their scandium and yttrium triflate complexes show excellent reactivity and enantioselectivities in the catalytic asymmetric aldol condensation of electron-deficient aromatic aldehydes and ketones, including acetone and cycloalkanones. The stereoselectivity is rationalized to the strong π-stacking interaction between aromatic aldehydes and the vicinal iminophenol group in the chiral ligands.

Highly Stable 3D Supercuboids to 2D ZnSe Nanosheets: Formation for a High-Efficiency Catalysis System

Assembling into desired and higher-ordered superstructures makes nanocrystals superior candidates in a wide range of applications. Herein, we report a facile but robust colloidal chemistry method to obtain three-dimensional (3D) supercuboids from two-dimensional (2D) ZnSe nanosheets. It is well-defined that the formation mechanism of the supercuboids is based on the interaction among ligands on the ZnSe nanosheets. The highly stable supercuboids are composed of nanosheets with thickness of approximately ∼1.4 nm, and the spacing between two nanosheets in the supercuboid is revealed as ∼1.2 nm. Importantly, 2D nanosheets are readily regained by an exfoliation process of 3D supercuboids in a high-temperature solvothermal process. Furthermore, the Au@ZnSe heteronanosheets could be obtained by Au nanoparticles (NPs) decorated on 2D nanosheets. As a proof-of-concept application, the ZnSe nanosheets are applied in the catalysis of the aldol condensation reaction, which shows the high isolated yield of chalcone up to 80%.

Asymmetric Reactions Enabled by Cooperative Enantioselective Amino- and Lewis Acid Catalysis

Organocatalysis-the branch of catalysis featuring small organic molecules as the catalysts-has, in the last decade, become of central importance in the field of asymmetric catalysis, so much that it is now comparable to metal catalysis and biocatalysis. Organocatalysis is rationalized and classified by a number of so-called activation modes, based on the formation of a covalent or not-covalent intermediate between the organocatalyst and the organic substrate. Among all the organocatalytic activation modes, enamine and iminium catalysis are widely used for the practical preparation of valuable products and intermediates, both in academic and industrial contexts. In both cases, chiral amines are employed as catalysts. Enamine activation mode is generally employed in the reaction with electrophiles, while nucleophiles require the iminium activation mode. Commonly, in both modes, the reaction occurs through well-organized transitions states. A large variety of partners can react with enamines and iminium ions, due to their sufficient nucleophilicity and electrophilicity, respectively. However, despite the success, organocatalysis still suffers from narrow scopes and applications. Multicatalysis is a possible solution for these drawbacks because the two different catalysts can synergistically activate the substrates, with a simultaneous activation of the two different reaction partners. In particular, in this review we will summarize the reported processes featuring Lewis acid catalysis and organocatalytic activation modes synergically acting and not interfering with each other. We will focus our attention on the description of processes in which good results cannot be achieved independently by organocatalysis or Lewis acid catalysis. In these examples of cooperative dual catalysis, a number of new organic transformations have been developed. The review will focus on the possible strategies, the choice of the Lewis acid and the catalytic cycles involved in the effective reported combination. Additionally, some important key points regarding the rationale for the effective combinations will be also included. π-Activation of organic substrates by Lewis acids, via formation of electrophilic intermediates, and their reaction with enamines will be also discussed in this review.

Organic Synthesis Using Environmentally Benign Acid Catalysis

Recent advances in the application of environmentally benign acid catalysts in organic synthesis are reviewed. The work includes three main parts; (i) description of environmentally benign acid catalysts, (ii) synthesis with heterogeneous and (iii) homogeneous catalysts. The first part provides a brief overview of acid catalysts, both solid acids (metal oxides, zeolites, clays, ion-exchange resins, metal-organic framework based catalysts) and those that are soluble in green solvents (water, alcohols) and at the same time could be regenerated after reactions (metal triflates, heteropoly acids, acidic organocatalysts etc.). The synthesis sections review a broad array of the most common and practical reactions such as Friedel-Crafts and related reactions (acylation, alkylations, hydroxyalkylations, halogenations, nitrations etc.), multicomponent reactions, rearrangements and ring transformations (cyclizations, ring opening). Both the heterogeneous and homogeneous catalytic synthesis parts include an overview of asymmetric acid catalysis with chiral Lewis and Brønsted acids. Although a broad array of catalytic processes are discussed, emphasis is placed on applications with commercially available catalysts as well as those of sustainable nature; thus individual examples are critically reviewed regarding their contribution to sustainable synthesis.

Catalytic enantioselective aldol reactions

Recent developments in catalytic asymmetric aldol reactions have been summarized.

Combinations of Aminocatalysts and Metal Catalysts: A Powerful Cooperative Approach in Selective Organic Synthesis

The cooperation and interplay between organic and metal catalyst systems is of utmost importance in nature and chemical synthesis. Here innovative and selective cooperative catalyst systems can be designed by combining two catalysts that complement rather than inhibit one another. This refined strategy can permit chemical transformations unmanageable by either of the catalysts alone. This review summarizes innovations and developments in selective organic synthesis that have used cooperative dual catalysis by combining simple aminocatalysts with metal catalysts. Considerable efforts have been devoted to this fruitful field. This emerging area employs the different activation modes of amine and metal catalysts as a platform to address challenging reactions. Here, aminocatalysis (e.g., enamine activation catalysis, iminium activation catalysis, single occupied molecular orbital (SOMO) activation catalysis, and photoredox activation catalysis) is employed to activate unreactive carbonyl substrates. The transition metal catalyst complements by activating a variety of substrates through a range of interactions (e.g., electrophilic π-allyl complex formation, Lewis acid activation, allenylidene complex formation, photoredox activation, C-H activation, etc.), and thereby novel concepts within catalysis are created. The inclusion of heterogeneous catalysis strategies allows for "green" chemistry development, catalyst recyclability, and the more eco-friendly synthesis of valuable compounds.

Zinc complexes formed by 2,2′-bipyridine and 1,10-phenanthroline moieties combined with 2-azanorbornane: modular chiral catalysts for aldol reactions

Zinc complexes of new hybrid chiral imine ligands based on a bicyclic skeleton appear to be effective modular catalysts in asymmetric aldol reactions.

An overview of Zn-catalyzed enantioselective aldol type C–C bond formation

Enantioselective zinc-catalyzed aldol reactions provide an efficient route for the construction of a wide range of carbon–carbon bond-formation, which are described here.