Room Temperature C-H Arylation of Benzofurans by Aryl Iodides

Regio- and Chemoselective Palladium-Catalyzed Additive-Free Direct C─H Functionalization of Heterocycles with Chloroaryl Triflates Using Pyrazole-Alkyl Phosphine Ligands

A series of new pyrazole-alkyl phosphine ligands with varying cycloalkyl ring sizes that enable additive-free regio- and chemoselective C─H arylation of heterocycles are reported. Excellent α/β selectivity of various heterocycles such as benzo[b]thiophene, thiophene, furan, benzofuran, and thiazole can be achieved using these ligands, along with excellent chemoselectivity of C─Cl over C─OTf of chloroaryl triflates. Mechanistic studies supported by both experimental findings and density functional theory calculations indicate that the pyrazole phosphine ligands with optimal ring sizes allow the reaction to proceed with a lower energy barrier via a concerted metalation-deprotonation pathway.

Direct α-Arylation of Benzo[b]furans Catalyzed by a Pd3 Cluster

As an interim paradigm for the catalysts between those based on more conventional mononuclear molecular Pd complexes and Pdn nanoparticles widely used in organic synthesis, polynuclear palladium clusters have attracted great attention for their unique reactivity and electronic properties. However, the development of Pd cluster catalysts for organic transformations and mechanistic investigations is still largely unexploited. Herein, we disclose the use of trinuclear palladium (Pd3Cl) species as an active catalyst for the direct C-H α-arylation of benzo[b]furans with aryl iodides to afford 2-arylbenzofurans in good yields under mild conditions. With this method, broad substrate adaptability was observed, and several drug intermediates were synthesized in high yields. Mechanistic studies indicated that the Pd3 core most likely remained intact throughout the reaction course.

Fe-Catalyzed Difunctionalization of Aryl Titanates Enabled by Fe/Ti Synergism

Fe-catalyzed difunctionalization of aryl titanates via double C-H activation has been developed, where aryl titanates were arylated via ortho C-H activation, followed by ipso electrophilic trapping of the C-Ti bond. The ortho C-H arylation should be promoted by a 1,2-Fe/Ti synergistic heterobimetallic arylene intermediate and represents an ortho C-H ferration directed by a readily transformable C-Ti group. Common benzamides, esters, and nitriles function as arylating reagents, which involves another ortho C-H activation directed by these functionalities.

Ab Initio Metadynamics Simulations of Hexafluoroisopropanol Solvent Effects: Synergistic Role of Solvent H-Bonding Networks and Solvent-Solute C-H/π Interactions

The solvent effects in Friedel-Crafts cycloalkylation of epoxides and Cope rearrangement of aldimines were investigated by using ab initio molecular dynamics simulations. Explicit molecular treatments were applied for both reactants and solvents. The reaction mechanisms were elucidated via free energy calculations based on metadynamics simulations. The results reveal that both reactions proceed in a concerted fashion. Key solvent-substrate interactions are identified from the structures of transition states with explicit solvent molecules. The remarkable promotion effect of hexafluoroisopropanol solvent is ascribed to the synergistic effect of H-bonding networks and C-H/π interactions with substrates.

Synergistic Visible Light and Pd-Catalyzed C-H Alkylation of 1-Naphthylamines with α-Diazoesters

The combination of visible light irradiation and Pd-catalysis has been practically employed for the C-H alkylation reactions of naphthylamines and α-diazo esters, leading to the synthesis of α-naphthyl functionalized acetates via C-C bond construction under mild reaction conditions and under solvent-free conditions. The light irradiation has been proven to play a pivotal role in the reactions, probably by promoting the generation of active carbene species from α-diazo esters.

Synergistic catalysis for the synthesis of semiconducting polymers

Organic semiconductors have received much interest over the past few decades. As the field has progressed, so has the complexity of the molecular structures of organic semiconductors. Often, the highest-performing organic semiconductors (i.e., those with the highest charge mobility or those that provide the highest power conversion efficiencies in organic photovoltaics) involve complex syntheses, making them very challenging to synthesize, even by experienced synthetic chemists. In this focused review, we report on recent efforts in developing more efficient synthetic pathways. Specifically, the concept of synergistic catalysis, which involves the use of two or more catalysts with orthogonal reactivity to enable reactions that are not possible with the use of a single catalyst, is introduced. Synergistic catalysis allows for controlled polymerizations, room-temperature reactions, and/or polymerizations with greater regioselectivity, opening the door to more time-, labor-, cost-, and energy-saving methods for synthesizing semiconducting polymers.

Hydride Relay Exchange Mechanism for the Heterocyclic C-H Arylation of Benzofuran and Benzothiophene Catalyzed by Pd Complexes

The mechanism and regioselectivity of the heterocyclic C-H arylation of benzofuran and benzothiophene catalyzed by Pd(OAc)₂ complexes were investigated using the density functional theory (DFT) method. The Pd(0)L₂(PhI) complex (L = HOAc) is proposed to be the catalytic species. Compared to the traditional Heck-type mechanism, concerted metalation-deprotonation (CMD) mechanism, and electrophilic aromatic substitution (S_EAr) mechanism for the C-H arylation, a new hydride relay exchange mechanism was proposed for the benzoheterocyclic C-H arylation catalyzed by Pd complexes, which consists of two redox processes between Pd(II) and Pd(0) species to complete the regioselective C-H activation. The calculated results indicate that the reaction along the hydride relay exchange mechanism is more favorable than those along other mechanisms, including the traditional Heck-type mechanism and the base-assisted anti-H elimination mechanism. This agrees well with the experimental results. Meanwhile, the origin for the regioselective C-H arylation was unveiled in which the α-C-H arylation products are major for the heterocyclic C-H arylation of benzofuran, but the β-C-H arylation products are major for that of benzothiophene. This study might provide a deep mechanistic understanding on the regioselective C-H activation and arylation of benzoheterocycle compounds catalyzed by transition-metal complexes.

Circular Discovery in Small Molecule and Conjugated Polymer Synthetic Methodology

Simple and efficient methods are a key consideration for small molecule and polymer syntheses. Direct arylation polymerization (DArP) is of increasing interest for preparing conjugated polymers as an effective approach compared to conventional cross-coupling polymerizations. As DArP sees broader utilization, advancements are needed to access materials with improved properties and different monomer structures and to improve the scalability of conjugated polymer synthesis. Presented herein are considerations for developing new methods of conjugated polymer synthesis from small molecule transformations, exploring how DArP has successfully used this approach, and presenting how emerging polymerization methodologies are developing similarly. While it is common to adapt small molecule methods to polymerizations, we demonstrate the ways in which information gained from studying polymerizations can inform and inspire greater advancements in small molecule transformations. This circular approach to organic synthetic method development underlines the value of collaboration between small molecule and polymer-based synthetic research groups.