A Combined Spectroscopic and Computational Study on the Mechanism of Iron-Catalyzed Aminofunctionalization of Olefins Using Hydroxylamine Derived N-O Reagent as the "Amino" Source and "Oxidant"

A povarov-type reaction to access tetrahydroquinolines from N-benzylhydroxylamines and alkenes in HFIP

Here, we report the synthesis of tetrahydroquinolines between newly developed N-benzylhydroxylamine reagents and alkenes using HFIP as a solvent. This transformation is notably applicable to highly electronically deactivated styrenes and aliphatic alkenes, expanding the range of tetrahydroquinolines attainable.

Iron-Catalyzed Primary Amination of C(sp3)-H Bonds

Primary amines are privileged molecules in drug development. Yet, there is a noticeable scarcity of methods for directly introducing a primary amine group into the ubiquitous C(sp3)-H bonds within organic compounds. Here, we report an iron-based catalytic system that enables direct primary amination of C(sp3)-H bonds under aqueous conditions and air. Various types of C(sp3)-H bonds, including benzylic, allylic, and aliphatic ones, can be readily functionalized with high selectivity and efficiency. The broad utility of this method has been further verified by late-stage amination of 11 complex bioactive molecules. Mechanistic studies unveil a protonated iron-nitrene complex as the key intermediate for the C-H bond activation. This work extends the toolbox for direct C(sp3)-H functionalizations, opening up new opportunities for late-stage modifications of organic molecules.

Photoinduced Group Transposition via Iridium-Nitrenoid Leading to Amidative Inner-Sphere Aryl Migration

We herein report a fundamental mechanistic investigation into photochemical metal-nitrenoid generation and inner-sphere transposition reactivity using organometallic photoprecursors. By designing Cp*Ir(hydroxamate)(Ar) complexes, we induced photo-initiated ligand activation, allowing us to explore the amidative σ(Ir-aryl) migration reactivity. A combination of experimental mechanistic studies, femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy, and density functional theory (DFT) calculations revealed that the metal-to-ligand charge transfer enables the σ(N-O) cleavage, followed by Ir-acylnitrenoid generation. The final inner-sphere σ(Ir-aryl) group migration results in a net amidative group transposition.

Harnessing Bromo/Acyloxy Transposition (BrAcT) and Excited-State Copper Catalysis for Styrene Difunctionalization

1,2-Difunctionalization of styrenes, adding two distinct functional groups across the C═C double bond, has emerged as a powerful tool for enhancing molecular complexity. Herein, we report the development of a regioconvergent β-acyloxylation-α-ketonylation of styrenes through bromo/acyloxy transposition (BrAcT) and excited-state copper catalysis. This approach is amenable to gram-scale synthesis and tolerates a wide range of functional groups and complex molecular frameworks, including derivatives of natural products and marketed drugs. Our experimental and computational studies suggest a unique mechanism featuring a dynamic, ionic BrAcT process and excited-state copper-catalyzed redox reactions. We anticipate that this BrAcT process could serve as a broadly applicable and versatile strategy for β-acyloxylation-α-functionalization of styrenes, creating valuable intermediates for preparing new pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, and functional materials.

Reaction Discovery Using Spectroscopic Insights from an Enzymatic C-H Amination Intermediate

Engineered hemoproteins can selectively incorporate nitrogen from nitrene precursors like hydroxylamine, O-substituted hydroxylamines, and organic azides into organic molecules. Although iron-nitrenoids are often invoked as the reactive intermediates in these reactions, their innate reactivity and transient nature have made their characterization challenging. Here we characterize an iron-nitrosyl intermediate generated from NH2OH within a protoglobin active site that can undergo nitrogen-group transfer catalysis, using UV-vis, electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy, and high-resolution electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (HR-ESI-MS) techniques. The mechanistic insights gained led to the discovery of aminating reagents─nitrite (NO2-), nitric oxide (NO), and nitroxyl (HNO)─that are new to both nature and synthetic chemistry. Based on the findings, we propose a catalytic cycle for C-H amination inspired by the nitrite reductase pathway. This study highlights the potential of engineered hemoproteins to access natural nitrogen sources for sustainable chemical synthesis and offers a new perspective on the use of biological nitrogen cycle intermediates in biocatalysis.

Iron-catalyzed C-7 Selective NH2 Amination of Indoles

7-Aminoindoles are important synthetic intermediates to a broad range of bioactive molecules. Transition metal-catalyzed directed C-H amination is among the most straightforward route for their synthesis, whereas methods that could directly incorporate an NH2 group in a highly selective manner remains elusive. Moreover, there is still high demand for the development of earth-abundant metal catalysis for such attractive reactivity. We present here the first C-7 selective NH2 amination of indoles through a directed homolytic aromatic substitution (HAS) with iron-aminyl radical. The reaction exhibits broad substrate scope, tolerates variety of functional groups, and is readily scalable with catalyst loading down to 0.1 mol % and turnover number (TON) up to 4500.

Difunctionalization Processes Enabled by Hexafluoroisopropanol

In the past 5 years, hexafluoroisopropanol (HFIP) has been used as a unique solvent or additive to enable challenging transformations through substrate activation and stabilization of reactive intermediates. In this Review, we aim at describing difunctionalization processes which were unlocked when HFIP was involved. Specifically, we focus on cyclizations and additions to alkenes, alkynes, epoxides, and carbonyls that introduce a wide range of functional groups of interest.

Correlating Structure with Spectroscopy in Ascorbate Peroxidase Compound II

Structural and spectroscopic investigations of compound II in ascorbate peroxidase (APX) have yielded conflicting conclusions regarding the protonation state of the crucial Fe(IV) intermediate. Neutron diffraction and crystallographic data support an iron(IV)-hydroxo formulation, whereas Mössbauer, X-ray absorption (XAS), and nuclear resonance vibrational spectroscopy (NRVS) studies appear consistent with an iron(IV)-oxo species. Here we examine APX with spectroscopy-oriented QM/MM calculations and extensive exploration of the conformational space for both possible formulations of compound II. We establish that irrespective of variations in the orientation of a vicinal arginine residue and potential reorganization of proximal water molecules and hydrogen bonding, the Fe-O distances for the oxo and hydroxo forms consistently fall within distinct, narrow, and nonoverlapping ranges. The accuracy of geometric parameters is validated by coupled-cluster calculations with the domain-based local pair natural orbital approach, DLPNO-CCSD(T). QM/MM calculations of spectroscopic properties are conducted for all structural variants, encompassing Mössbauer, optical, X-ray absorption, and X-ray emission spectroscopies and NRVS. All spectroscopic observations can be assigned uniquely to an Fe(IV)═O form. A terminal hydroxy group cannot be reconciled with the spectroscopic data. Under no conditions can the Fe(IV)═O distance be sufficiently elongated to approach the crystallographically reported Fe-O distance. The latter is consistent only with a hydroxo species, either Fe(IV) or Fe(III). Our findings strongly support the Fe(IV)═O formulation of APX-II and highlight unresolved discrepancies in the nature of samples used across different experimental studies.

Combinatorial Ligand Assisted Simultaneous Control of Axial and Central Chirality in Highly Stereoselective C-H Allylation

The significance of stereoselective C-H bond functionalization thrives on its direct application potential to pharmaceuticals or complex chiral molecule synthesis. Complication arises when there are multiple stereogenic elements such as a center and an axis of chirality to control. Over the years cooperative assistance of multiple chiral ligands has been applied to control only chiral centers. In this work, we harness the essence of cooperative ligand approach to control two different stereogenic elements in the same molecule by atroposelective allylation to synthesize axially chiral biaryls from its racemic precursor. The crucial roles played by chiral phosphoric acid and chiral amino acid ligand in concert helped us to obtain one major stereoisomer out of four distinct possibilities.

Direct C-C Double Bond Cleavage of Alkenes Enabled by Highly Dispersed Cobalt Catalyst and Hydroxylamine

The utilization of a single-atom catalyst to break C-C bonds merges the merits of homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis and presents an intriguing pathway for obtaining high-value-added products. Herein, a mild, selective, and sustainable oxidative cleavage of alkene to form oxime ether or nitrile was achieved by using atomically dispersed cobalt catalyst and hydroxylamine. Diversified substrate patterns, including symmetrical and unsymmetrical alkenes, di- and tri-substituted alkenes, and late-stage functionalization of complex alkenes were demonstrated. The reaction was successfully scaled up and demonstrated good performance in recycling experiments. The hot filtration test, catalyst poisoning and radical scavenger experiment, time kinetics, and studies on the reaction intermediate collectively pointed to a radical mechanism with cobalt/acid/O2 promoted C-C bond cleavage as the key step.

Ortho-Selective amination of arene carboxylic acids via rearrangement of acyl O-hydroxylamines

Direct amination of arene C-H bonds is an attractive disconnection to form aniline-derived building blocks. This transformation presents significant practical challenges; classical methods for ortho-selective amination require strongly acidic or forcing conditions, while contemporary catalytic processes often require bespoke directing groups and/or precious metal catalysis. We report a mild and procedurally straightforward ortho-selective amination of arene carboxylic acids, arising from a facile rearrangement of acyl O-hydroxylamines without requiring precious metal catalysts. A broad scope of benzoic acid substrates are compatible and the reaction can be applied to longer chain arene carboxylic acids. Mechanistic studies probe the specific requirement for trifluoroacetic acid in generating the active aminating agent, and suggest that two separate mechanisms may be operating in parallel in the presence of an iron catalyst: (i) an iron-nitrenoid intermediate and (ii) a radical chain pathway. Regardless of which mechanism is followed, high ortho selectivity is obtained, proposed to arise from the directivity (first) or attractive interactions (second) arising with the carboxylic acid motif.

Stereochemistry in All Its Shapes and Forms: The 56th Bürgenstock Conference

Acknowledging the crucial role of stereochemistry in fields as diverse as total synthesis, synthetic methodology, spectroscopy, and the study of the origin of life, the 56th SCS Conference on Stereochemistry, better known as the BÃ1/4rgenstock Conference, brought together a diverse range of chemistry expertise in Brunnen, Switzerland.

Enzymatic Nitrogen Incorporation Using Hydroxylamine

Hydroxylamine-derived reagents have enabled versatile nitrene transfer reactions for introducing nitrogen-containing functionalities in small-molecule catalysis, as well as biocatalysis. These reagents, however, result in a poor atom economy and stoichiometric organic waste. Activating hydroxylamine (NH2OH) for nitrene transfer offers a low-cost and sustainable route to amine synthesis, since water is the sole byproduct. Despite its presence in nature, hydroxylamine is not known to be used for enzymatic nitrogen incorporation in biosynthesis. Here, we report an engineered heme enzyme that can utilize hydroxylammonium chloride, an inexpensive commodity chemical, for nitrene transfer. Directed evolution of Pyrobaculum arsenaticum protoglobin generated efficient enzymes for benzylic C-H primary amination and styrene aminohydroxylation. Mechanistic studies supported a stepwise radical pathway involving rate-limiting hydrogen atom transfer. This unprecedented activity is a useful addition to the "nitrene transferase" repertoire and hints at possible future discovery of natural enzymes that use hydroxylamine for amination chemistry.

The Complex Reactivity of [(salen)Fe]2(μ-O) with HBpin and Its Implications in Catalysis

We report a detailed study into the method of precatalyst activation during alkyne cyclotrimerization. During these studies we have prepared a homologous series of Fe(III)-μ-oxo(salen) complexes and use a range of techniques including UV-vis, reaction monitoring studies, single crystal X-ray diffraction, NMR spectroscopy, and LIFDI mass spectrometry to provide experimental evidence for the nature of the on-cycle iron catalyst. These data infer the likelihood of ligand reduction, generating an iron(salan)-boryl complex as a key on-cycle intermediate. We use DFT studies to interrogate spin states, connecting this to experimentally identified diamagnetic and paramagnetic species. The extreme conformational flexibility of the salan system appears connected to challenges associated with crystallization of likely on-cycle species.

Mechanistic Studies of Iron-PyBOX-Catalyzed Olefin Amino-Oxygenation with Functionalized Hydroxylamines

Iron-catalyzed amino-oxygenation of olefins often uses discrete ligands to increase reactivity and broaden substrate scope. This work is focused on examining ligand effects on reactivity and in situ iron speciation in a system which utilizes a bisoxazoline ligand. Freeze-trapped ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer and EPR spectroscopies as well as SC-XRD experiments were utilized to isolate and identify the species formed during the catalytic reaction of amino-oxygenation of olefins with functionalized hydroxylamines, as well as in the precatalytic mixture of iron salt and ligand. Experiments revealed significant influence of ligand and solvent on the speciation in the precatalytic mixture which led to the formation of different species which had significant influence on the reactivity. In situ experiments showed no evidence for the formation of an Fe(IV)-nitrene intermediate, and the isolation of a reactive intermediate was unsuccessful, suggesting that the use of the PyBOX ligand led to the formation of more reactive intermediates than observed in the previously studied system, preventing direct detection of intermediate species. However, isolation of the seven coordinate Fe(III) species with three carboxylate units of the hydroxylamine and spin-trap EPR experiments suggest formation of a species with unpaired electron density on the hydroxylamine nitrogen, which is in accordance with formation of a potential iron iminyl radical species, as recently proposed in literature. An observed increase in yield when substrates devoid of C-H bonds as well as isolation of a ring-closed dead-end species with substrates containing these bonds suggests the identity of the functionalized hydroxylamine can dictate the reactivity observed in these reactions.

Synthesis of Unprotected β-Arylethylamines by Iron(II)-Catalyzed 1,2-Aminoarylation of Alkenes in Hexafluoroisopropanol

β-Arylethylamines are prevalent structural motifs in molecules exhibiting biological activity. Here we report a sequential one-pot protocol for the 1,2-aminoarylation of alkenes with hydroxylammonium triflate salts and (hetero)arenes. Unlike existing methods, this reaction provides a direct entry to unprotected β-arylethylamines with remarkable functional group tolerance, allowing key drug-oriented functional groups to be installed in a two-step process. The use of hexafluoroisopropanol as a solvent in combination with an iron(II) catalyst proved essential to reaching high-value nitrogen-containing molecules.

Atomically Dispersed Co-N/C Catalyst for Divergent Synthesis of Nitrogen-Containing Compounds from Alkenes

Alkene functionalization with a single-atom catalyst (SAC) which merges homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis is a fascinating route to obtain high-value-added molecules. However, C-N bond formation of alkene with SAC is still unexplored. Herein, a bimetal-organic framework-derived Co-N/C catalyst with an atomically dispersed cobalt center is reported to show good activity of chemoselective aziridination/oxyamination reactions from alkene and hydroxylamine, and late-stage functionalization of complex alkenes and diversified synthetic transformations of the aziridine product further expand the utility of this method. Moreover, this system proceeds without external oxidants and exhibits mild, atom-economic, and recyclable characters. Detailed spectroscopic characterizations and mechanistic studies revealed the structure of the catalytic center and possible intermediates involved in the mechanism cycle.

Role of Noncovalent Interactions in Inducing High Enantioselectivity in an Alcohol Reductive Deoxygenation Reaction Involving a Planar Carbocationic Intermediate

The involvement of planar carbocation intermediates is generally considered undesirable in asymmetric catalysis due to the difficulty in gaining facial control and their intrinsic stability issues. Recently, suitably designed chiral catalyst(s) have enabled a guided approach of nucleophiles to one of the prochiral faces of carbocations affording high enantiocontrol. Herein, we present the vital mechanistic insights from our comprehensive density functional theory (B3LYP-D3) study on a chiral Ir-phosphoramidite-catalyzed asymmetric reductive deoxygenation of racemic tertiary α-substituted allenylic alcohols. The catalytic transformation relies on the synergistic action of a phosphoramidite-modified Ir catalyst and Bi(OTf)₃, first leading to the formation of an Ir-π-allenyl carbocation intermediate through a turn-over-determining S_N1 ionization, followed by a face-selective hydride transfer from a Hantzsch ester analogue to yield an enantioenriched product. Bi(OTf)₃ was found to promote a significant number of ionic interactions as well as noncovalent interactions (NCIs) with the catalyst and the substrates (allenylic alcohol and Hantzsch ester), thus providing access to a lower energy route as compared to the pathways devoid of Bi(OTf)₃. In the nucleophilic addition, the chiral induction was found to depend on the number and efficacy of such key NCIs. The curious case of reversal of enantioselectivity, when the α-substituent of the allenyl alcohol is changed from methyl to cyclopropyl, was identified to originate from a change in mechanism from an enantioconvergent pathway (α-methyl) to a dynamic kinetic asymmetric transformation (α-cyclopropyl). These molecular insights could lead to newer strategies to tame tertiary carbocations in enantioselective reactions using suitable combinations of catalysts and additives.

Unprotected amine transfer performed by non-heme iron(II) complexes

Direct amination of C-H or CC bonds using unprotected amino groups is very challenging, especially with earth abundant metal ions. Here we show that a bioinspired iron(II) complex catalyses the double amination of its dangling benzyl branch in the presence of hydroxylamine derivatives as the unprotected amine donor and that the replacement of the benzyl branch by a methyl group also allows the aziridination of styrene.

Advancing Critical Chemical Processes for a Sustainable Future: Challenges for Industry and the Max Planck-Cardiff Centre on the Fundamentals of Heterogeneous Catalysis (FUNCAT)

Catalysis is involved in around 85 % of manufacturing industry and contributes an estimated 25 % to the global domestic product, with the majority of the processes relying on heterogeneous catalysis. Despite the importance in different global segments, the fundamental understanding of heterogeneously catalysed processes lags substantially behind that achieved in other fields. The newly established Max Planck-Cardiff Centre on the Fundamentals of Heterogeneous Catalysis (FUNCAT) targets innovative concepts that could contribute to the scientific developments needed in the research field to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions in the chemical industries. This Viewpoint Article presents some of our research activities and visions on the current and future challenges of heterogeneous catalysis regarding green industry and the circular economy by focusing explicitly on critical processes. Namely, hydrogen production, ammonia synthesis, and carbon dioxide reduction, along with new aspects of acetylene chemistry.