Kotaro Kikushima

Palladium-Catalyzed Asymmetric Conjugate Addition of Arylboronic Acids to Five-, Six-, and Seven-Membered β-Substituted Cyclic Enones: Enantioselective Construction of All-Carbon Quaternary Stereocenters

The first enantioselective Pd-catalyzed construction of all-carbon quaternary stereocenters via 1,4-addition of arylboronic acids to β-substituted cyclic enones is reported. Reaction of a wide range of arylboronic acids and cyclic enones using a catalyst prepared from Pd(OCOCF(3))(2) and a chiral pyridinooxazoline ligand yields enantioenriched products bearing benzylic stereocenters. Notably, this transformation is tolerant to air and moisture, providing a practical and operationally simple method of synthesizing enantioenriched all-carbon quaternary stereocenters.

Mechanism and Enantioselectivity in Palladium-Catalyzed Conjugate Addition of Arylboronic Acids to β-Substituted Cyclic Enones: Insights from Computation and Experiment

Enantioselective conjugate additions of arylboronic acids to β-substituted cyclic enones have been previously reported from our laboratories. Air- and moisture-tolerant conditions were achieved with a catalyst derived in situ from palladium(II) trifluoroacetate and the chiral ligand (S)-t-BuPyOx. We now report a combined experimental and computational investigation on the mechanism, the nature of the active catalyst, the origins of the enantioselectivity, and the stereoelectronic effects of the ligand and the substrates of this transformation. Enantioselectivity is controlled primarily by steric repulsions between the t-Bu group of the chiral ligand and the α-methylene hydrogens of the enone substrate in the enantiodetermining carbopalladation step. Computations indicate that the reaction occurs via formation of a cationic arylpalladium(II) species, and subsequent carbopalladation of the enone olefin forms the key carbon-carbon bond. Studies of nonlinear effects and stoichiometric and catalytic reactions of isolated (PyOx)Pd(Ph)I complexes show that a monomeric arylpalladium-ligand complex is the active species in the selectivity-determining step. The addition of water and ammonium hexafluorophosphate synergistically increases the rate of the reaction, corroborating the hypothesis that a cationic palladium species is involved in the reaction pathway. These additives also allow the reaction to be performed at 40 °C and facilitate an expanded substrate scope.

Nickel-Catalyzed Formation of Fluorine-Containing Ketones via the Selective Cross-Trimerization Reaction of Tetrafluoroethylene, Ethylene, and Aldehydes

In the presence of a catalytic amount of Ni(cod)2 and IPr (1,3-bis(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)imidazol-2-ylidene), a cross-trimerization reaction of tetrafluoroethylene (TFE), ethylene, and aldehydes proceeded in a selective manner to afford a variety of 4,4,5,5-tetrafluoro-1-pentanone derivatives in good to excellent yields. The present system involves a five-membered nickelacycle key intermediate generated via the oxidative cyclization of TFE and ethylene.

Synthesis, Characterization, and Unique Catalytic Activities of a Fluorinated Nickel Enolate

We have synthesized a new nickel enolate [(PhCOCF2)Ni(dcpe)][FB(C6F5)3] featuring fluorine atoms on the enolate moiety via B(C6F5)3-promoted C-F bond activation of α,α,α-trifluoroacetophenone. X-ray diffraction study of [(PhCOCF2)Ni(dcpe)][FB(C6F5)3] revealed that the complex had adopted an η(3)-oxallyl coordination mode in the crystal lattice. The reaction of (t)BuNC with [(PhCOCF2)Ni(dcpe)][FB(C6F5)3] resulted in the coordination of isocyanide to the nickel center to form a C-bound enolate complex. The reactions of [(PhCOCF2)Ni(dcpe)][FB(C6F5)3] with aldehydes gave insertion products quantitatively which were fully characterized by NMR spectroscopy. Furthermore, we established unique catalytic applications for [(PhCOCF2)Ni(dcpe)][FB(C6F5)3] toward a Tishchenko reaction, along with a highly selective crossed-esterification of α,α,α-trifluoroacetophenones with aldehydes.

Transition‐Metal‐Free Catalytic Hydrodefluorination of Polyfluoroarenes by Concerted Nucleophilic Aromatic Substitution with a Hydrosilicate

A transition-metal-free catalytic hydrodefluorination (HDF) reaction of polyfluoroarenes is described. The reaction involves direct hydride transfer from a hydrosilicate as the key intermediate, which is generated from a hydrosilane and a fluoride salt. The eliminated fluoride regenerates the hydrosilicate to complete the catalytic cycle. Dispersion-corrected DFT calculations indicated that the HDF reaction proceeds through a concerted nucleophilic aromatic substitution (CSN Ar) process.

Synthesis and Reactivity of Fluoroalkyl Copper Complexes by the Oxycupration of Tetrafluoroethylene

The copper(I)-mediated generation of -OCF2 CF2 - moieties by the oxycupration of tetrafluoroethylene (TFE) using either copper aryloxides or alkoxides is disclosed. The key intermediates, 2-aryloxy-1,1,2,2-tetrafluoroethyl and 2-alkoxy-1,1,2,2-tetrafluoroethyl copper complexes, were obtained from the reaction of the corresponding aryloxy and alkoxy copper complexes with TFE, and their structures in solution and in the solid state were unambiguously determined by multinuclear NMR spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction analysis. These copper complexes subsequently reacted with aryl iodides (ArI) to afford ROCF2 CF2 Ar (R=aryl or alkyl) in high yields.

CuI-Catalyzed Pentafluoroethylation of Aryl Iodides in the Presence of Tetrafluoroethylene and Cesium Fluoride: Determining the Route to the Key Pentafluoroethyl CuI Intermediate

The Cu(I)-catalyzed pentafluoroethylation of iodoarenes via the fluorocupration of tetrafluoroethylene (TFE) is disclosed. The active species, (phen)CuC2 F5 , was isolated and its molecular structure confirmed by a single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. The key to the successful suppression of the competing oligomerization of TFE is to refrain from stirring the reaction mixture. A mechanistic study clearly discarded the possibility that the catalytic reaction proceeds via a radical pathway.