Vinyl carbocations have been the subject of extensive experimental and theoretical studies over the past five decades. Despite this long history in chemistry, the utility of vinyl cations in chemical synthesis has been limited, with most reactivity studies focusing on solvolysis reactions or intramolecular processes. Here we report synthetic and mechanistic studies of vinyl cations generated through silylium-weakly coordinating anion catalysis. We find that these reactive intermediates undergo mild intermolecular carbon-carbon bond-forming reactions, including carbon-hydrogen (C-H) insertion into unactivated sp C-H bonds and reductive Friedel-Crafts reactions with arenes. Moreover, we conducted computational studies of these alkane C-H functionalization reactions and discovered that they proceed through nonclassical, ambimodal transition structures. This reaction manifold provides a framework for the catalytic functionalization of hydrocarbons using simple ketone derivatives.

Over the past 80 years, phenyl cation intermediates have been implicated in a variety of C-H arylation reactions. Although these examples have inspired several theoretical and mechanistic studies, aryl cation equivalents have received limited attention in organic methodology. Their high-energy, promiscuous reactivity profiles have hampered applications in selective intermolecular processes. We report a reaction design that overcomes these challenges. Specifically, we found that β-silicon-stabilized aryl cation equivalents, generated via silylium-mediated fluoride activation, undergo insertion into sp and sp C-H bonds. This reaction manifold provides a framework for the catalytic arylation of hydrocarbons, including simple alkanes such as methane. This process uses low loadings of Earth-abundant initiators (1 to 5 mole percent) and occurs under mild conditions (30° to 100°C).

Here we report the surprising discovery that high-energy vinyl carbocations can be generated under strongly basic conditions, and that they engage in intramolecular sp3 C–H insertion reactions through the catalysis of weakly coordinating anion salts. This approach relies on the unconventional combination of lithium hexamethyldisilazide base and the commercially available catalyst, triphenylmethylium tetrakis(pentafluorophenyl)-borate. These reagents form a catalytically active lithium species that enables the application of vinyl cation C–H insertion reactions to heteroatom-containing substrates.

Herein we report the 3,5bistrifluoromethylphenyl urea-catalyzed functionalization of unactivated C-H bonds. In this system, the urea catalyst mediates the formation of high-energy vinyl carbocations that undergo facile C-H insertion and Friedel-Crafts reactions. We introduce a new paradigm for these privileged scaffolds where the combination of hydrogen bonding motifs and strong bases affords highly active Lewis acid catalysts capable of ionizing strong C-O bonds. Despite the highly Lewis acidic nature of these catalysts that enables triflate abstraction from sp 2 carbons, these newly found reaction conditions allow for the formation of heterocycles and tolerate highly Lewis basic heteroaromatic substrates. This strategy showcases the potential utility of dicoordinated vinyl carbocations in organic synthesis.

From the preparation of pharmaceuticals to enzymatic construction of natural products, carbocations are central to molecular synthesis. Although these reactive intermediates are engaged in stereoselective processes in nature, exerting enantiocontrol over carbocations with synthetic catalysts remains challenging. Many resonance-stabilized tricoordinated carbocations, such as iminium and oxocarbenium ions, have been applied in catalytic enantioselective reactions. However, their dicoordinated counterparts (aryl and vinyl carbocations) have not, despite their emerging utility in chemical synthesis. We report the discovery of a highly enantioselective vinyl carbocation carbon–hydrogen (C–H) insertion reaction enabled by imidodiphosphorimidate organocatalysts. Active site confinement featured in this catalyst class not only enables effective enantiocontrol but also expands the scope of vinyl cation C–H insertion chemistry, which broadens the utility of this transition metal–free C(sp 3 )–H functionalization platform.