Regioselectivity of Radical Additions to Substituted Alkenes: Insight from Conceptual Density Functional Theory

DFT investigation of hydrogen atom-abstraction reactions of NHC-boranes by various carbon-centered radicals: barriers and correlation analyses

In this study, we employed a quantum-mechanical computational method to investigate the hydrogen-atom abstraction reactions of two nitrogen heterocyclic carbene boranes (NHC-boranes), NHC-BH3 and NHC-BH2CN, by a series of carbon-centered radicals bearing various substituents. We explored the degree of correlation of the activation and free energy barriers to their components. Furthermore, we also investigated the effects of the radical and substituent sizes, nucleophilicity/electrophilicity indices, and the spin density distribution of the radical reactants on the three fundamental barriers and the thermal contribution of the reaction energy to the kinetic barrier. Using the generated data, we assessed the abilities of the various radical reactants to abstract the hydrogen atom from NHC-boranes. Further, we performed a similar analysis after dividing those radical reactants into four groups, which were classified based on the dominant factor affecting their electronic density distribution, which involves the inductive effect, conjugation, hyperconjugation, and the feedback of lone-pair electrons. The results and conclusions of this investigation not only provide insight into the relationships between some of the key kinetic and thermodynamic parameters, which is useful for understanding the dynamics of such hydrogen-abstraction reactions, but also provide information for selecting suitable radical reactants for further experimental investigations.

Chain propagation determines the chemo- and regioselectivity of alkyl radical additions to C-O vs. C-C double bonds

Investigations into the selectivity of intermolecular alkyl radical additions to C-O- vs. C-C-double bonds in α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds are described. Therefore, a photoredox-initiated radical chain reaction is explored, where the activation of the carbonyl-group through an in situ generated Lewis acid - originating from the substrate - enables the formation of either C-O or the C-C-addition products. α,β-Unsaturated aldehydes form selectively 1,2-, while esters and ketones form the corresponding 1,4-addition products exclusively. Computational studies lead to reason that this chemo- and regioselectivity is determined by the consecutive step, i.e. an electron transfer, after reversible radical addition, which eventually propagates the radical chain.

Understanding Rate Acceleration and Stereoinduction of an Asymmetric Giese Reaction Mediated by a Chiral Rhodium Catalyst

The surprising acceleration of the addition of electron-rich radicals to α,β-unsaturated 2-acyl imidazoles by a chiral-at-metal rhodium catalyst is investigated. M06/Lanl2DZ (Rh),6-31G(d) calculations reproduce the observed rate acceleration and shed light on a catalyst design where a rigid chiral pocket with a steric interaction >5 Å from the chiral metal center leads to the observed high stereoinduction. Analysis of the molecular orbitals of two key addition transition states emphasize the role of the catalyst as a Lewis acid without significant charge transfer.

Global and local reactivity indices for electrophilic/nucleophilic free radicals

A set of five DFT reactivity indices, namely, the global electrophilicity ω° and nucleophilicity N° indices, the radical Parr function P, and the local electrophilicity ω and nucleophilicity N indices, for the study of free radicals (FRs) are proposed. Global indices have been tested for a series of 32 FRs having electrophilic and/or nucleophilic activations. As expected, no correlation between the proposed global electrophilicity ω° and global nucleophilicity N° has been found. Analysis of the local electrophilicity ω and nucleophilicity N indices for FRs, together with analysis of the local electrophilicity ωk and nucleophilicity Nk indices for alkenes, allows for an explanation of the regio- and chemoselectivity in radical additions of FRs to alkenes. Finally, an ELF bonding analysis for the C-C bond formation along the nucleophilic addition of 2-hydroxyprop-2-yl FR 28 to methyl acrylate 35 evidences that the new C-C bond is formed by C-to-C coupling of two radical centres, which are properly characterized through the use of the Parr functions.

Pushing the boundaries of intrinsically stable radicals: inverse design using the thiadiazinyl radical as a template

In this study, for the first time inverse design was applied to search for the intrinsically most stable radical system in a predefined chemical space of enormous size by scanning in a rational way that entire chemical space. The focus was predominantly on thermodynamic stabilization effects, such as stabilization through resonance. Two different properties were optimized: a newly introduced descriptor called the radical delocalization value and the intrinsic stability via a previously established bond dissociation enthalpy model. The thiadiazinyl radical was chosen as case study of this new approach of inverse design in stable radical chemistry. The resulting optimal structure is found to be highly stable, intrinsically more so than other well-known stable radicals, such as verdazyls and N,N-diphenyl-N'-picrylhydrazyl, and even rivaling the intrinsic stability of nitrogen monoxide.