Density functional theory calculations were performed to explore the mechanism of Ni-catalyzed crosscoupling reactions involving organo-lithium and -zinc reagents through ethereal C-O bond cleavage. Based on this work, together with our previous mechanistic study on etheric Kumada-Tamao reaction, we identify and characterize a novel catalytic cycle for cross-coupling mediated by Ni(0)-ate complex.Key words cross-coupling; ether; nickel catalyst; organolithium; organozinc; density functional theory (DFT) calculation Efficient and selective cleavage and transformation of C-O bonds, particularly by means of cross-coupling methods, has attracted great interest, since compounds containing C-O moieties occur widely in nature and are also extensively utilized in industry.1-8) Among C-O compounds, ethers are particularly attractive, [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] as they offer the advantages of 1) high atom economy/conversion efficiency (the use of ethers as simple as MeO as substrates affords fewer by-products compared with tosylate, mesylate, triflate, phosphate, etc.), 2) environmental compatibility (cleavage of the C-O moiety in ether releases non-halogen-containing waste), and 3) excellent stability, easy accessibility and wide diversity. However, ethereal C-O bonds ( E C-O) are very unreactive, and most of the well-established Pd-catalyzed C-O bond-cleaving protocols are ineffective for ethers.On the other hand, Ni-catalysts have proved effective for many types of C-O bond cleavage, including ethers. As early as in 1979, Wenkert et al. 9,10) reported the first Ni-catalyzed Kumada-Tamao type (Mg) 9-23) reaction, in which aryl methyl ether (ArOMe) acted as the electrophilic partner, and this is now recognized as the first example of Ni-catalyzed activation of an inert C-O bond. However, this breakthrough was overlooked for decades, until quite recently. After the development of improved conditions, ArOR can now be used as a coupling partner in several types of transition metal (TM)-catalyzed cross-couplings and related transformations, such as Suzuki-Miyaura-type (B), [24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31] Negishi-type (Zn or Al), [32][33][34][35][36] Murahashi-type (Li), [37][38][39][40] and other reactions. 41-50) As a continuation of our work in this area, we reported in 2012 the first ethereal Negishi-type coupling of aryl alkyl ether 36) (Chart 1(1)) and in 2016 we reported a systematic examination of ethereal Murahashi-type reaction 37) (Chart 1(2)). More recently, we also reported an in-depth study of Ni-catalyzed cross-coupling between organoaluminums and various types of C-O electrophiles, including aryl alkyl ether. 32) Results and DiscussionThe conventional catalytic cycle for cross-coupling reaction consists of three elemental steps: oxidative addition (OA), transmetalation, and reductive elimination. [51][52][53][54] Martin and colleagues reported that direct OA of a E C-O bond to Ni(0) requires high temperature, based on experimental and theoretical findings.46) Computational studies by Nakamura and colleagues, ...
A revisit of organoaluminum reagents for crosscoupling reactions has opened up several types of C−C bond formation protocols through cleavage of phenolic/alcoholic C−O and C−F and ammonium C−N bonds.Catalyzed by the commercially available NiCl 2 (PCy 3 ) 2 catalyst, these reactions proceed smoothly with a wide range of substrates and broad functional group compatibility, providing a versatile methodology for organoaluminum-mediated cross-coupling processes.
In situ generated silyl anion species enable the concerted nucleophilic aromatic substitution of fluoroarenes. Model DFT calculations indicated that addition of a base to a silylborane would thermodynamically form a silyl borate complex and then kinetically release a silyl anion species through Si−B bond cleavage, and that the in situ generated silyl anion equivalent would further react with a fluoroarene through a concerted nucleophilic aromatic substitution pathway with an activation barrier of ca. 20 kcal/mol to afford the silylated product with a large energy gain. Experiments confirmed that the defluorosilylation reaction took place smoothly at room temperature simply upon mixing fluoroarenes with commercially available silylborane and NaOtBu. Radical scavenger and radical clock reaction experiments provide further evidence for the in situ generation of the silyl anion.
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