Lewis acid–base 1,2-addition reactions: synthesis of pyrylium borates from en-ynoate precursors

Alkoxycarbonyl Groups in Metalloesters Showing Oxocarbenium-like Structure and Alkylating Reactivity

In contrast to the well-documented acylating reactivity, the alkylating reactivity of the alkoxycarbonyl group, as signified by its oxocarbenium-like resonance structure, remains almost unexplored. Herein, the first series of Co/Ni dinuclear metalloesters exhibiting the novel oxocarbenium-like alkoxycarbonyl groups were synthesized and characterized. In these deformed alkoxycarbonyl groups, the Ccarbonyl-Oalkoxyl bonds were contracted to 1.177(11)~1.191(9) Å with the elongations of the Ccarbonyl=Ocarbonyl bonds to 1.368(13)~1.441(9) Å. Meanwhile, the O-Calkyl bonds were also elongated to 1.522(11) ~1.607(15) Å, and were by far the longest O-Calkyl bonds reported for alkoxycarbonyl groups. As triggered by the long O-Calkyl distances, the alkylating reactivity of the oxocarbenium-like methoxycarbonyl group towards a series of C/N/O-nucleophiles via the rare BAL2 mechanism at ambient conditions was examined. Furthermore, the homo-etherifications of alcohols mediated by the Co/Ni dinuclear metalloesters were investigated. The yields followed the trend ethanol≫n-propanol≫n-butanol ≈n-pentanol, that closely related to the structure features of the alkoxycarbonyl groups in corresponding metalloesters: while the ethoxycarbonyl group showed the reactive oxocarbenium-like framework, the n-propoxycarbonyl group displayed the dioxocarbenium-like skeleton with a shorter O-Calkyl bond; In comparison, the classical frameworks with unactivated alkyl moieties were observed for n-butoxycarbonyl and n-pentoxycarbonyl groups.

Mechanistic Insight from Lewis-Acid-Dependent Selectivity and Reversible Haloboration, as Harnessed for Boron-Based Electrophilic Cyclization Reactions

Different reaction selectivity occurs with the Lewis acids B-chlorocatecholborane (ClBcat), B-bromocatecholborane (BrBcat), and BBr3, favoring either alkyne haloboration, electrophilic cyclization of a tethered nucleophilic sulfur onto the alkyne, or group transfer of the nucleophile. This reaction selectivity also depends on the chain length of the tethered nucleophile, revealing a subtle interplay of relative kinetics and thermodynamics. In all cases, BBr3 reacts readily with alkynes to form haloborated products; however, this process is reversible, and this reversibility can be harnessed to ultimately access regio- and stereodefined cyclic sulfonium zwitterions via the slower but thermodynamically favored electrophilic cyclization pathway. Reversibility was noted by following the reaction by NMR spectroscopy, and by characterizing the kinetic and thermodynamic products by a combination of 2D NMR spectroscopy and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The "mixed" reagent bromocatechol borane (BrBcat) displayed reactivity between ClBcat and BBr3, producing bromoboration in some cases and electrophilic cyclization in others. With this enhanced understanding of the reaction dynamics, it becomes possible to use boron Lewis acids in a predictable manner in cases where haloboration is the kinetic product but in which the reversibility of this reaction maintains access to eventual alternative reactivity leading to desired building blocks in organic synthesis.

Metallomimetic Chemistry of Boron

The study of main-group molecules that behave and react similarly to transition-metal (TM) complexes has attracted significant interest in recent decades. Most notably, the attractive idea of replacing the all-too-often rare and costly metals from catalysis has motivated efforts to develop main-group-element-mediated reactions. Main-group elements, however, lack the electronic flexibility of TM complexes that arises from combinations of empty and filled d orbitals and that seem ideally suited to bind and activate many substrates. In this review, we look at boron, an element that despite its nonmetal nature, low atomic weight, and relative redox staticity has achieved great milestones in terms of TM-like reactivity. We show how in interelement cooperative systems, diboron molecules, and hypovalent complexes the fifth element can acquire a truly metallomimetic character. As we discuss, this character is powerfully demonstrated by the reactivity of boron-based molecules with H₂, CO, alkynes, alkenes and even with N₂.

Synthesis and photophysical properties of imine borane adducts towards vapochromic materials

A series of alkynyl aryl conjugated aldehydes and imines were prepared and their adducts with various Lewis acidic boranes have been studied via NMR, absorption, and luminescence spectroscopies in solution.

B(C6F5)3: a robust catalyst for the activation of CO2 and dimethylamine borane for the N-formylation reactions

In this work, B(C₆F₅)₃ is utilized as an organocatalyst for the transition-metal-free N-formylation of amines using carbon dioxide (CO₂) as a C1 source and dimethylamine borane (Me₂NH·BH₃) as a green hydrogen transfer source at 80 °C.

Boron-Heteroatom Addition Reactions via Borylative Heterocyclization: Oxyboration, Aminoboration, and Thioboration

Organoboron compounds and heterocycles are powerful building blocks and precursors for organic synthesis, including for drug discovery and agrochemical and material synthesis. The common strategy for the synthesis of borylated heterocycles involves two separate synthetic steps: first, synthesis of the heterocyclic core, and second, borylation of the core through established methods such as transition-metal-catalyzed C-H or C-X activation/borylation or lithiation/borylation. In this Account, we describe our laboratory's development of borylative heterocyclization reactions that access the heterocyclic core and install boron in one synthetic step. These methods provide complementary bond disconnections, regiochemistry, and functional-group compatibility to current methods. We describe our methods with two categories: a direct borylation method that refers to addition reactions starting from a preformed B-element σ bond, which is essential in the mechanistic route to product formation, and a formal borylation method that refers to addition reactions that do not require formation of a B-element bond but instead proceed through carbon-carbon π-bond activation by an electrophilic boron source followed by dealkylation or deacylation. Through electrophilic activation of the alkyne rather than activation of the B-element bond, formal borylation provides a complementary strategy toward neutral organoboron reagents. We first studied direct oxyboration toward the formation of borylated benzofurans, where a preformed boron-oxygen σ bond is added across an alkyne activated by a carbophilic gold catalyst. We describe detailed mechanistic and kinetic studies of this class of reactions. Application of the knowledge gained from these studies aided in the future development of additional direct borylation reactions involving boron-nitrogen and boron-oxygen σ bonds to form borylared indoles and isoxazoles, respectively. Formal addition of boron/oxygen equivalents to effect oxyboration to form borylated lactones from o-alkynyl esters is then described. This class of reactions takes advantage of bifunctional ClBcat as a carbophilic carbon-carbon π-bond activator and eventual dealkylating agent. We describe our motivation in developing this new class of catalyst-free borylation reactions and subsequently applying the formal borylation strategy to the thioboration of o-alkynylthioanisole substrates to form borylated benzothiophenes. We then proceed to describe our investigations into the details of the mechanism of the formal thioboration reaction. These collaborative mechanistic studies included experimental and computational findings that elucidated the rate-determining step and intermediates of the reaction. These studies further compared different boron sources as electrophiles, including those used in other known reactions, providing fundamental knowledge about the capabilities of commercially available boron reagents toward borylative heterocyclization. Our findings provide guiding principles for reaction design and information leading toward the design of a diverse set of boron-heteroatom addition reactions and their formal equivalents that proceed through borylative heterocyclization.

Mechanistic Studies of Formal Thioboration Reactions of Alkynes

Several formal heteroborylative cyclization reactions have been recently reported, but little physical-organic and mechanistic data are known. We now investigate the catalyst-free formal thioboration reaction of alkynes to gain mechanistic insight into B-chlorocatecholborane (ClBcat) in its new role as an alkynophilic Lewis acid in electrophilic cyclization/dealkylation reactions. In kinetic studies, the reaction is second-order globally and first-order with respect to both the 2-alkynylthioanisole substrate and the ClBcat electrophile, with activation parameters of ΔG^‡ = 27.1 ± 0.1 kcal mol^-1 at 90 °C, ΔH^‡ = 13.8 ± 1.0 kcal mol^-1, and ΔS^‡ = -37 ± 3 cal mol^-1 K^-1, measured over the range 70-90 °C. Carbon kinetic isotope effects supported a rate-determining Ad_E3 mechanism wherein alkyne activation by neutral ClBcat is concerted with cyclative attack by nucleophilic sulfur. A Hammett study found a ρ⁺ of -1.7, suggesting cationic charge buildup during the cyclization and supporting rate-determining concerted cyclization. Studies of the reaction with tris(pentafluorophenyl)borane (B(C₆F₅)₃), an activating agent capable of cyclization but not dealkylation, resulted in the isolation of a postcyclization zwitterionic intermediate. Kinetic studies via UV-vis spectroscopy with this boron reagent found second-order kinetics, supporting the likely relevancy of intermediates in this system to the ClBcat system. Computational studies comparing ClBcat with BCl₃ as an activating agent showed why BCl₃, in contrast to ClBcat, failed to mediate the complete the cyclization/demethylation reaction sequence by itself. Overall, the results support a mechanism in which the ClBcat reagent serves a bifunctional role by sequentially activating the alkyne, despite being less electrophilic than other known alkyne-activating reagents and then providing chloride for post-rate-determining demethylation/neutralization of the resulting zwitterionic intermediate.

Imidazole-stabilized, electron-deficient boron cations

Highly Lewis acidic borenium cations were prepared and are shown to activate H₂ and effect 1,1-carborations of alkynes.

Contrasting Frustrated Lewis Pair Reactivity with Selenium- and Boron-Based Lewis Acids

The activation of π-bonds in diynyl esters has been investigated by using soft and hard Lewis acids. In the case of the soft selenium Lewis acid PhSeCl, sequential activation of the alkyne bonds leads initially to an isocoumarin (1 equiv PhSeCl) and then to a tetracyclic conjugated structure with the isocoumarin subunit fused to a benzoselenopyran (3 equiv PhSeCl). Conversely, the reaction with the hard Lewis acidic borane B(C6 F5 )3 initiates a cascade reaction to yield a complex π-conjugated system containing phthalide and indene subunits.

The Propargyl Rearrangement to Functionalised Allyl-Boron and Borocation Compounds

A diverse range of Lewis acidic alkyl, vinyl and aryl boranes and borenium compounds that are capable of new carbon-carbon bond formation through selective migratory group transfer have been synthesised. Utilising a series of heteroleptic boranes [PhB(C6 F5 )2 (1), PhCH2 CH2 B(C6 F5 )2 (2), and E-B(C6 F5 )2 (C6 F5 )C=C(I)R (R=Ph 3 a, nBu 3 b)] and borenium cations [phenylquinolatoborenium cation ([QOBPh][AlCl4 ], 4)], it has been shown that these boron-based compounds are capable of producing novel allyl- boron and boronium compounds through complex rearrangement reactions with various propargyl esters and carbamates. These reactions yield highly functionalised, synthetically useful boron substituted organic compounds with substantial molecular complexity in a one-pot reaction.

Synthesis and reactivity of N,N′-1,4-diazabutadiene derived borocations

A new route to generate borocations has been established. By utilising readily synthesised diimines derived from commercially available materials, a new family of borenium- and boronium-cations can be synthesised from haloboranes.