Reactions of the
nickel(0) compound NiL4 (L = PPh3) with alkyl
halides RX involve initial inner-sphere halogen
atom abstraction from the alkyl halides to form alkyl radicals R·
and halonickel(I) metalloradical species NiX(PPh3)2,3. The radical pairs then undergo combination within
the solvent cage to give the square planar nickel(II) compounds NiRX(PPh3)2. Radical
intermediacy is demonstrated persuasively by observations that the
relative rates vary in the orders tert-butyl > sec-butyl > n-butyl and RI > RBr
> RCl,
while density functional theory calculations indicate that the radical
mechanism provides a lower energy pathway than do alternative, more
conventional pathways. The product of the reaction of Ni(PPh3)4 with methyl iodide, NiMeI(PPh3)2, decomposes in solution to ethane and NiI(PPh3)2,3, but when RX = EtI, n-BuI, sec-BuI, tert-BuI, the alkyl-nickel products
undergo rapid β-hydrogen elimination to give the hydride NiHI(PPh3)2 plus the corresponding alkene(s). Reactions
also occur in which a portion of the alkyl radicals diffuses from
the solvent cage and abstracts hydrogen from NiHI(PPh3)2 to form alkanes RH and Ni(I) species NiI(PPh3)2. As a result, NiHI(PPh3)2 is invariably a minor product while the major products are
alkanes RH, alkenes R–H, and NiI(PPh3)2. Hydride NiHI(PPh3)2 is found
to decompose to H2 and NiI(PPh3)2 but is stable at low temperatures where it exhibits unusual NMR
behavior because of exchange involving free PPh3 and the
bis- and trisphosphine species, NiHI(PPh3)2 and NiHI(PPh3)3. Present in all of the
reactions are paramagnetic, substitution-labile Ni(I) metalloradical
species. As a result, resonances of PPh3, ethylene, and
the smaller iodoalkenes are generally broad and shifted because of
exchange between free and coordinated ligands.
Both Ni(0) and Ni(I)
compounds are believed to exhibit cross-coupling
catalytic properties under various conditions, and the compounds Ni(PPh3)4 and NiCl(PPh3)3 are compared
as catalysts for representative Suzuki–Miyaura and Heck–Mizoroki
cross-coupling reactions. The Ni(0) compound exhibits catalytic activities,
for cross-coupling of chloro and bromoanisole with phenylboronic acid
and of bromobenzene with styrene, yielding results which are comparable
with those of many palladium-based catalysts, but our findings with
NiCl(PPh3)3 are at this point unclear. It seems
to convert to catalytically active Ni(0) species under Suzuki–Miyaura
reaction conditions and is ineffective for Heck–Mizoroki cross-coupling.
The paramagnetic Ni(I) compounds NiX(PPh3)3 (X
= Cl, Br, I) are characterized for the first time by 1H
NMR spectroscopy and are found to exhibit broad meta and para resonances at δ 9–11 and
3–4, respectively, and very broad ortho resonances
at δ 4−6; these resonances are very useful for detecting
Ni(I) species in solution. The chemical shifts of NiCl(PPh3)3 vary with the concentration of free PPh3, with which it exchanges, and are also temperature-dependent, consistent
with Curie law behavior. The compound trans-NiPhCl(PPh3)2, the product of oxidative addition of chlorobenzene
to Ni(PPh3)4 and a putative intermediate in
cross-coupling reactions of chlorobenzene, is found during the course
of this investigation to exhibit entirely unanticipated thermal lability
in solution in the absence of free PPh3. It readily decomposes
to biphenyl and NiCl(PPh3)2 in a reaction relevant
to the long-known but little-understood nickel-catalyzed conversion
of aryl halides to biaryls. Ni(I) and biphenyl formation is initiated
by PPh3 dissociation from trans-NiPhCl(PPh3)2 and formation of a dinuclear intermediate, a
process which is now better defined using DFT methodologies.
Quinone organocatalysis is an emerging area, and this report highlights some recently developed thermal and photocatalytic reactions, with particular emphasis on photooxygenation reactions. Further, it is discussed how the orthogonal ground-and excitedstate reactivities of quinones can be utilized for the development of tandem catalytic processes.
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