A cooperative allylic fluorination: combination of nucleophilic and electrophilic fluorine sources

Catalytic 1,1-diazidation of alkenes

Compared to well-developed catalytic 1,2-diazidation of alkenes to produce vicinal diazides, the corresponding catalytic 1,1-diazidation of alkenes to yield geminal diazides has not been realized. Here we report an efficient approach for catalytic 1,1-diazidation of alkenes by redox-active selenium catalysis. Under mild conditions, electron-rich aryl alkenes with Z or E or Z/E mixed configuration can undergo migratory 1,1-diazidation to give a series of functionalized monoalkyl or dialkyl geminal diazides that are difficult to access by other methods. The method is also effective for the construction of polydiazides. The formed diazides are relatively safe by TGA-DSC analysis and impact sensitivity tests, and can be easily converted into various valuable molecules. In addition, interesting reactivity that geminal diazides give valuable molecules via the geminal diazidomethyl moiety as a formal leaving group in the presence of Lewis acid is disclosed. Mechanistic studies revealed that a selenenylation-deselenenylation followed by 1,2-aryl migration process is involved in the reactions, which provides a basis for the design of new reactions.

Regiocontrolled allylic functionalization of internal alkene via selenium-π-acid catalysis guided by boron substitution

The selenium-π-acid-catalysis has received increasing attention as a powerful tool for olefin functionalization, but the regioselectivity is often problematic. Reported herein is a selenium-catalyzed regiocontrolled olefin transpositional chlorination and imidation reaction. The reaction outcome benefits from an allylic B(MIDA) substitution. And the stabilization of α-anion from a hemilabile B(MIDA) moiety was believed to be the key factor for selectivity. Broad substrate scope, good functional group tolerance and generally good yields were observed. The formed products were demonstrated to be valuable precursors for the synthesis of a wide variety of structurally complex organoborons.

Vessel effects in organic chemical reactions; a century-old, overlooked phenomenon

One of the most intriguing aspects of synthetic chemistry is the interplay of numerous dependent and independent variables en route to achieve a successful, high-yielding chemical transformation. The experienced synthetic chemist will probe many of these variables during reaction development and optimization, which will routinely involve investigation of reaction temperature, solvent, stoichiometry, concentration, time, choice of catalyst, addition sequence or quenching conditions just to name some commonly addressed variables. Remarkably, little attention is typically given to the choice of reaction vessel material as the surface of common laboratory borosilicate glassware is, incorrectly, assumed to be chemically inert. When reviewing the scientific literature, careful consideration of the vessel material is typically only given during the use of well-known glass-etching reagents such as HF, which is typically only handled in HF-resistant, polyfluorinated polymer vessels. However, there are examples of chemical transformations that do not involve such reagents but are still clearly influenced by the choice of reaction vessel material. In the following review, we wish to condense the most significant examples of vessel effects during chemical transformations as well as observations of container-dependent stability of certain molecules. While the primary focus is on synthetic organic chemistry, relevant examples from inorganic chemistry, polymerization reactions, atmospheric chemistry and prebiotic chemistry are also covered.

Synthesis of novel fluorinated building blocks via halofluorination and related reactions

A study exploring halofluorination and fluoroselenation of some cyclic olefins, such as diesters, imides, and lactams with varied functionalization patterns and different structural architectures is described. The synthetic methodologies were based on electrophilic activation through halonium ions of the ring olefin bonds, followed by nucleophilic fluorination with Deoxo-Fluor^®. The fluorine-containing products thus obtained were subjected to elimination reactions, yielding various fluorine-containing small-molecular entities.

Site-Selective Photochemical Fluorination of Ketals: Unanticipated Outcomes in Selectivity and Stability

We report a method for the regioselective photochemical sp³ C-H fluorination of acetonide ketals that presents interesting problems in chemical reactivity. The question of why certain products of the reaction are stable while others are not is addressed, as is the question of why only select α-ethereal hydrogen atoms are targeted in the reaction. We demonstrate that the method can be employed to synthesize unprecedented fluorinated sugars and steroids, and it can also be applied toward the fluorination of carbamates. Though some substrates contain up to eight discrete α-ethereal C-H bonds, we observed site-selectivity in each case, prompting us to investigate potential transition states for the reaction. Finally, a remarkable regiochemical switch upon minor structural modification of a diketal is also analyzed.

Chemoselective Mono- and Difluorination of 1,3-Dicarbonyl Compounds

By altering the amount of Selectfluor, the highly selective mono- and difluorination of 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds has been achieved, affording a variety of 2-fluoro- and 2,2-difluoro-1,3-dicarbonyl compounds in good to excellent yields. The reaction can be readily performed in aqueous media without any catalyst and base, which features practical and convenient fluorination. Importantly, a gram-scale reaction, transformation of 2-fluoro-1,3-diphenylpropane-1,3-dione to 4-fluoro-1,3,5-triphenyl-1H-pyrazole, and chlorination and bromination of 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds are realized to further exhibit its synthetic utility.

Shielding Effect of Micelle for Highly Effective and Selective Monofluorination of Indoles in Water

Highly selective direct monofluorination of indoles and arenes was developed through an approach that allows site-specific solubility of substrate and fluorine source in the micelle. This approach was highly selective for a broad range of substrates with excellent functional group tolerance. Differences in binding constant and solubility of indoles and arenes in the micelle allowed the fine-tuning of selectivity. Control experiments suggested a radical pathway and provided insight into the role of micelles of the environmentally benign amphiphile PS-750-M. Dynamic light scattering experiments strongly indicated the site-specific solubility of the substrate and fluorine source. The methodology was successfully adapted to gram scale, and the E-factor established from a recycle study indicated that the process is environmentally responsible and sustainable.

cis-Specific cyanofluorination of vinyl azides enabled by electron-donor-acceptor complexes: synthesis of α-azido-β-fluoronitriles

Here we report a novel electron-donor-acceptor (EDA) complex-enabled three-component cyanofluorination of vinyl azides under metal-free conditions in a cis-specific manner. This reaction protocol is operationally simple without exclusion of either moisture or oxygen, allowing access to a wide range of highly-functionalized α-azido-β-fluoronitriles bearing quaternary carbons that are difficult to obtain by existing methods.

Electrophilic Selenium Catalysis with Electrophilic N-F Reagents as the Oxidants

A suitable oxidative system is crucial to electrophilic selenium catalysis (ESC). This short review offers the overview of recent development in ESC with electrophilic N-F reagents as the oxidants. Several highly selective transformations of alkenes such as allylic or vinylic imidation, pyridination, syn-dichlorination, oxidative cyclization and asymmetric cyclization have been described.

Radical fluorination reactions by thermal and photoinduced methods

Radical fluorination reactions of aliphatic Csp³ and Csp² atoms, decarboxylative fluorination, and fluorination of (hetero)aromatics can be accomplished with electrophilic fluorinating reagents such as Selectfluor and NFSI.

Transition-metal free oxidative aliphatic C–H fluorination

A mild and practical unactivated aliphatic C–H fluorination reaction was reported without the use of transition metals.

Visible light-promoted metal-free sp(3)-C-H fluorination

Photoexcited acetophenone can catalyze the fluorination of unactivated C(sp(3))-H groups. While acetophenone, a colorless oil, only has a trace amount of absorption in the visible light region, its photoexcitation can be achieved by irradiation with light generated by a household compact fluorescent lamp (CFL). This operational simple method provides improved substrate scope for the direct incorporation of a fluorine atom into simple organic molecules. CFL-irradiation can also be used to promote certain classic UV-promoted photoreactions of colorless monoarylketones and enones/enals.