Second-Coordination Sphere Effect on the Reactivity of Vanadium–Peroxo Complexes: A Computational Study

Enantioselective Radical-Type 1,2-Alkoxy-Phosphinoylation to Styrenes Catalyzed by Chiral Vanadyl Complexes

A series of vanadyl complexes bearing 3-t-butyl-5-bromo, 3-aryl-5-bromo, 3,5-dihalo-, and benzo-fused N-salicylidene-tert-leucinates was examined as catalysts for 1,2-alkoxy-phosphinoylation of 4-, 3-, 3,4-, and 3,5-substituted styrene derivatives (including Me/t-Bu, Ph, OR, Cl/Br, OAc, NO₂ , C(O)Me, CO₂ Me, CN, and benzo-fused) with HP(O)Ph₂ in the presence of t-BuOOH (TBHP) in a given alcohol or cosolvent with MeOH. The best scenario involved the use of 5 mol % 3-(2,5-dimethylphenyl)-5-Br (i.e., 3-DMP-5-Br) catalyst at 0 °C in MeOH. The desired catalytic cross coupling reactions proceeded smoothly with enantioselectivities of up to 95 % ee of (R)-configuration as confirmed by X-ray crystallographic analysis of several recrystallized products. The origin of enantiocontrol and homolytic substitution of the benzylic intermediates by vanadyl-bound methoxide and radical type catalytic mechanism were proposed.

A Combined Experimental and Theoretical Investigation of Oxidation Catalysis by cis-[VIV(O)(Cl/F)(N4)]+ Species Mimicking the Active Center of Metal-Enzymes

Reaction of VIVOCl2 with the nonplanar tetradentate N4 bis-quinoline ligands yielded four oxidovanadium(IV) compounds of the general formula cis-[VIV(O)(Cl)(N4)]Cl. Sequential treatment of the two nonmethylated N4 oxidovanadium(IV) compounds with KF and NaClO4 resulted in the isolation of the species with the general formula cis-[VIV(O)(F)(N4)]ClO4. In marked contrast, the methylated N4 oxidovanadium(IV) derivatives are inert toward KF reaction due to steric hindrance, as evidenced by EPR and theoretical calculations. The oxidovanadium(IV) compounds were characterized by single-crystal X-ray structure analysis, cw EPR spectroscopy, and magnetic susceptibility. The crystallographic characterization showed that the vanadium compounds have a highly distorted octahedral coordination environment and the d(VIV-F) = 1.834(1) Å is the shortest to be reported for (oxido)(fluorido)vanadium(IV) compounds. The experimental EPR parameters of the VIVO2+ species deviate from the ones calculated by the empirical additivity relationship and can be attributed to the axial donor atom trans to the oxido group and the distorted VIV coordination environment. The vanadium compounds act as catalysts toward alkane oxidation by aqueous H2O2 with moderate ΤΟΝ up to 293 and product yields of up to 29% (based on alkane); the vanadium(IV) is oxidized to vanadium(V), and the ligands remain bound to the vanadium atom during the catalysis, as determined by 51V and 1H NMR spectroscopies. The cw X-band EPR studies proved that the mechanism of the catalytic reaction is through hydroxyl radicals. The chloride substitution reaction in the cis-[VIV(O)(Cl)(N4)]+ species by fluoride and the mechanism of the alkane oxidation were studied by DFT calculations.

Rationalization of chirality transfer and fast conformational changes in a tris(2-pyridylmethyl)amine-based cage

The key features that govern the chirality transfer in a structurally contracted covalent cage, consisting of a northern chiral cyclotriveratrylene (CTV) connected to a southern tris(2-pyridyl-methyl)amine (TPA) unit by three methyl bridges, are described. The preferential orientation of the propeller arrangement of TPA is dictated by its compact structure, with an arm of the TPA unit pointing inside the cage, together with the relative positioning of the three pyridines regarding the chiral CTV cap. The diastereomers with P/P (or M/M) configurations for the CTV and TPA units adopt eclipsed structures and were found to be more stable by 40 kJ mol-1 than the P/M (or M/P) diastereomer which displays a staggered arrangement. The existence of isomerization pathways between isomers of the cage with low energy barriers (38 kJ mol-1) accounts for the 1H-NMR signal, which is consistent with an averaged C 3 structure.