Trineopentylphosphine (TNpP) in combination with palladium provides a highly effective catalyst for the Buchwald-Hartwig coupling of sterically demanding aryl bromides and chlorides with sterically hindered aniline derivatives. Excellent yields are obtained even when both substrates include 2,6-diisopropyl substituents. Notably, the reaction rate is inversely related to the steric demand of the substrates. X-ray crystallographic structures of Pd(TNpP)2, [Pd(4-t-Bu-C6H4)(TNpP)(μ-Br)]2, and [Pd(2-Me-C6H4)(TNpP)(μ-Br)]2 are reported. These structures suggest that the conformational flexibility of the TNpP ligand plays a key role in allowing the catalyst to couple hindered substrates. The Pd/TNpP system also shows good activity for the Suzuki coupling of hindered aryl bromides.

A high-yielding stereospecific route to the synthesis of single geometric isomers of diaryl oxime ethers through Suzuki coupling of N-alkoxyimidoyl iodides is described. This reaction occurs with complete retention of the imidoyl halide geometry to give single E- or Z-isomers of diaryl oxime ethers. The Sonogashira coupling of N-alkoxyimidoyl iodides and bromides with a wide variety of terminal alkynes to afford single geometric isomers of aryl alkynyl oxime ethers has also been developed. Several of these reactions proceed through copper-free conditions. The Negishi coupling of N-alkoxyimidoyl halides is introduced. The E and Z configurations of nine Suzuki-coupling products and two Sonogashira-coupling products were confirmed by X-ray crystallography.

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The engineering of reaction mixtures that ensure the solubility of inorganic salt byproducts without compromising the reactivity is a grand challenge for continuous flow manufacturing in upstream pharmaceuticals and fine chemicals process development. Aqueous cross-coupling reactions are possible solutions. We report the study of an aqueous phase Pd-catalyzed Cu-free direct arylation of an alkyne using a hydrophilic ligand towards understanding the role of water on the cross-coupling kinetics. Kinetic analyses of theoretically estimated molar flux rates and the measured reaction kinetics reveal a transition from mass transfer to kinetically controlled deprotonation and carbopalladation mechanisms. Interfacial contact areas of immiscible aqueous–organic phases control the crossover from the mass-transfer-limited to the reaction-rate-limited regime. Highly agitated batch reactors and multiphase capillary flow reactors are needed to overcome the mass transport limitations and, thus, discover the transition from the apparent reaction kinetics to the true reaction kinetics. Comparison of previously reported Density Functional Theory calculations with experimentally measured activation energies, ranging from 14.8 to 20.0 kcal/mol, elucidates the theoretical possibility of designing the aqueous phase C–C cross-coupling reaction with similar reactivity as purely organic reactions. Although ambiguity remains concerning which reaction step is rate-determining in either the deprotonation or the carbopalladation mechanism, our discovery undergirds that one mechanism or the other could dominate in aqueous designed direct arylations.

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