No abstract

Silylium ion equivalents have shown promise as Lewis acid catalysts for a range of important C-C bond-forming reactions. Here we describe chiral C-H acids that upon in situ silylation, generate silylium-carbanion pairs, which are extremely active Lewis acid catalysts for enantioselective Diels-Alder reactions of cinnamates with cyclopentadiene. Enantiomeric ratios of up to 97:3 and diastereomeric ratios of more than 20:1 are observed across a diverse set of substitution patterns with 1 mole percent (mol %) of C-H acid catalyst and 10 mol % of a silylating reagent. The results show promise for broad applications of such C-H acid-derived silylium ion equivalents in asymmetric Lewis acid catalysis.

The application of the Pd-catalyzed oxidative C-H olefination of arenes, also known as the Fujiwara-Moritani reaction, has traditionally been limited by the requirement for directing groups on the substrate or the need to use the arene in large excess, typically as a (co)solvent. Herein the development of a catalytic system is described that, through the combined action of two complementary ligands, makes it possible to use directing-group-free arenes as limiting reagents for the first time. The reactions proceed under a combination of both steric and electronic control and enable the application of this powerful reaction to valuable arenes, which cannot be utilized in excess.

Due to the high versatility of chiral cyanohydrins, the catalytic asymmetric cyanation reaction of carbonyl compounds has attracted widespread interest. However, efficient protocols that function at a preparative scale with low catalyst loading are still rare. Here, asymmetric counteranion-directed Lewis acid organocatalysis proves to be remarkably successful in addressing this problem and enabled a molar-scale cyanosilylation in quantitative yield and with excellent enantioselectivity. Also, the catalyst loading could be lowered to a part-per-million level (50 ppm: 0.005 mol%). A readily accessible chiral disulfonimide was used, which in combination with trimethylsilyl cyanide, turned into the active silylium Lewis acid organocatalyst. The nature of a peculiar phenomenon referred to as a “dormant period”, which is mainly induced by water, was systematically investigated by means of in situ Fourier transform infrared analysis.

The nondirected C(sp2)−H activation of simple arenes has advanced significantly in recent years through the discovery of new catalyst systems that are able to perform transformations with the arene as the limiting reagent. Important developments in catalyst and ligand design that have improved reactivity and selectivity are reviewed.

Phenylacetylenes are key structural motifs in organic chemistry, which find widespread applications in bioactive molecules, synthetic intermediates, functional materials, and reagents. These molecules are typically prepared from prefunctionalized starting materials, e.g. using the Sonogashira coupling, or using directing groupbased C−H activation strategies. While highly efficient, these approaches remain limited by their inherent selectivities for specific regioisomers. Herein we present a complementary approach based on an arene-limited nondirected C−H activation. The reaction is predominantly controlled by steric rather than electronic factors and thereby gives access to a complementary product spectrum with respect to traditional methods. A broad scope as well as the suitability of this protocol for latestage functionalization are demonstrated.

The first aminocatalyzed α-alkylation of α-branched aldehydes with benzyl bromides as alkylating agents has been developed. Using a sterically demanding proline derived catalyst, racemic α-branched aldehydes are reacted with alkylating agents in a DYKAT process to give the corresponding α-alkylated aldehydes with quaternary stereogenic centers in good yields and high enantioselectivities.

Carboxylic acids are important in a variety of research fields and applications. As a result, substantial efforts have been directed towards the C–H functionalization of such compounds. While the use of the carboxylic acid moiety as a native directing group for C(sp2)–H functionalization reactions is well established, as yet there is no general solution for the C(sp3)–H activation of aliphatic carboxylic acids and most endeavors have instead relied on the introduction of stronger directing groups. Recently however, novel ligands, tools, and strategies have emerged, which enable the use of free aliphatic carboxylic acids in C–H-activation-based transformations.1 Introduction2 Challenges in the C(sp3)–H Bond Activation of Carboxylic Acids3 The Lactonization of Aliphatic Carboxylic Acids4 The Directing Group Approach5 The Direct C–H Arylation of Aliphatic Carboxylic Acids6 The Direct C–H Olefination of Aliphatic Carboxylic Acids7 The Direct C–H Acetoxylation of Aliphatic Carboxylic Acids8 Summary