Prasenjit Mal

White Phosphorus Is Air-Stable Within a Self-Assembled Tetrahedral Capsule

Molecular Fire Quencher Cage-shaped molecular assemblies can regulate the reactivity of smaller molecules trapped within them. Mal et al. (p. 1697) extend this approach to enable the protection of elemental white phosphorus (P4), a substance that rapidly ignites on contact with oxygen. The tetrahedral cages self-assemble in aqueous solution through coordination of six ligands to four iron ions, and efficiently capture phosphorus from a suspension. The water-soluble host-guest constructs were stable in air for at least 4 months, but released intact P4 rapidly on displacement by added benzene. A molecular cage keeps phosphorus from igniting in air, yet releases it easily for reactions when benzene is added. The air-sensitive nature of white phosphorus underlies its destructive effect as a munition: Tetrahedral P4 molecules readily react with atmospheric dioxygen, leading this form of the element to spontaneously combust upon exposure to air. Here, we show that hydrophobic P4 molecules are rendered air-stable and water-soluble within the hydrophobic hollows of self-assembled tetrahedral container molecules, which form in water from simple organic subcomponents and iron(II) ions. This stabilization is not achieved through hermetic exclusion of O2 but rather by constriction of individual P4 molecules; the addition of oxygen atoms to P4 would result in the formation of oxidized species too large for their containers. The phosphorus can be released in controlled fashion without disrupting the cage by adding the competing guest benzene.

Subcomponent self-assembly and guest-binding properties of face-capped Fe4L48+ capsules

A general method for preparing Fe(4)L(4) face-capped tetrahedral cages through subcomponent self-assembly was developed and has been demonstrated using four different C(3)-symmetric triamines, 2-formylpyridine, and iron(II). Three of the triamines were shown also to form Fe(2)L(3) helicates when the appropriate stoichiometry of subcomponents was used. Two of the cages were observed to have nearly identical Fe-Fe distances in the solid state, which enabled their ligands to be coincorporated into a collection of mixed cages. Only one of the cages combined a sufficiently large cavity with the sufficiently small pores required for guest binding, taking up a wide variety of guest species in size- and shape-selective fashion.

Supramolecular Multicomponent Self-Assembly of Shape-Adaptive Nanoprisms: Wrapping up C60 with Three Porphyrin Units

Self-assembly of a C(3v) symmetric trisphenanthroline and linear bisterpyridines in the presence of Cu(+) did not furnish the expected supramolecular nanoprisms in quantitative yield. With an accurately sized tripyridine as a stabilizing template, the nanoprism formed exclusively. Furthermore, an adaptive constriction of the nanoprism was seen with C(60) as template: as a result of the smaller size of C(60) the nanoframework wrapped up around the guest like an accordion-type host system.

Radical-Induced Metal and Solvent-Free Cross-Coupling Using TBAI-TBHP: Oxidative Amidation of Aldehydes and Alcohols with N-Chloramines via C-H Activation.

A solvent-free cross-coupling method for oxidative amidation of aldehydes and alcohols via a metal-free radial pathway has been demonstrated. The proposed methodology uses the TBAI-TBHP combination which efficiently induces metal-free C-H activation of aldehydes under neat conditions at 50 °C or ball-milling conditions at room temperature.

Towards technomimetic spoked wheels: dynamic hexakis-heteroleptic coordination at a hexakis-terpyridine scaffold

The synthesis of hexakis-terpyridine and an expedient approach to its dynamic hexakis-heteroleptic complexes are elaborated, the latter being readily accessible precursors for the construction of technomimetic molecular spoked wheels.

IBX works efficiently under solvent free conditions in ball milling

IBX (2-iodoxybenzoic acid), discovered in 1893, is an oxidant in synthetic chemistry whose extensive use is impeded by its explosiveness at high temperature and poor solubility in common organic solvents except DMSO. Since the discovery of Dess–Martin Periodinane in 1983, several modified IBX systems have been reported. However, under ball milling conditions, IBX works efficiently with various organic functionalities at ambient temperature under solvent free conditions. Also, the waste IBA (2-iodosobenzoic acid) produced from the reactions was in situ oxidized to IBX in the following step using oxone and thus reused for multiple cycles by conserving its efficiency (only ∼6% loss after 15 cycles). This work describes an overview of a highly economical synthetic methodology which overcomes the problems of using IBX, efficiently in gram scale and in a non-explosive way.

Mechanochemical synthesis of small organic molecules

With the growing interest in renewable energy and global warming, it is important to minimize the usage of hazardous chemicals in both academic and industrial research, elimination of waste, and possibly recycle them to obtain better results in greener fashion. The studies under the area of mechanochemistry which cover the grinding chemistry to ball milling, sonication, etc. are certainly of interest to the researchers working on the development of green methodologies. In this review, a collection of examples on recent developments in organic bond formation reactions like carbon–carbon (C–C), carbon–nitrogen (C–N), carbon–oxygen (C–O), carbon–halogen (C–X), etc. is documented. Mechanochemical syntheses of heterocyclic rings, multicomponent reactions and organometallic molecules including their catalytic applications are also highlighted.

An Organic Intermolecular Dehydrogenative Annulation Reaction

The discovery of a direct method for the synthesis of three-ring heterocyclic carbazoles from unactivated arenes and anilides by a metal-free (organic) intermolecular dehydrogenative annulation reaction under ambient laboratory conditions is reported. Iodine(III) was used as the sole reagent either stoichiometrically from inexpensive phenyliodine diacetate or organocatalytically by in situ generation from PhI-mCPBA. In a single step, three C(sp2)-H bonds and one N(sp3)-H bond are functionalized from two different arenes for tandem C-C and C-N bond formation reactions.

Solvent-Free Ball-Milling Subcomponent Synthesis of Metallosupramolecular Complexes

Subcomponent self-assembly from components A, B, C, D, and Fe(2+) under solvent-free conditions by self-sorting leads to the construction of three structurally different metallosupramolecular iron(II) complexes. Under carefully selected ball-milling conditions, tetranuclear [Fe4 (AD2 )6 ](4-) 22-component cage 1, dinuclear [Fe2 (BD2 )3 ](2-) 11-component helicate 2, and 5-component mononuclear [Fe(CD3 )](2+) complex 3 were prepared simultaneously in a one-pot reaction from 38 components. Through subcomponent substitution reaction by adding subcomponent B, the [Fe4 (AD2 )6 ](4-) cage converts quantitatively to the [Fe2 (BD2 )3 ](2-) helicate, which, in turn, upon addition of subcomponent C, transforms to [Fe(CD3 )](2+) , following the hierarchical preference based on the thermodynamic stability of the complexes.

Dehydrogenative Aromatic Ring Fusion for Carbazole Synthesis via C–C/C–N Bond Formation and Alkyl Migration

An intermolecular dehydrogenative annulation (IDA) for carbazole synthesis via sequential C-C/C-N bond formation with a selective alkyl group migration is reported. Using the hypervalent iodine(III) reagent PhI(OAc)2 (PIDA), in a one-pot operation, up to five C(sp2)-H bonds, one N(sp3)-H bond functionalization, and one alkyl (Me, Et) group migration could all be achieved from non-prefunctionalized 1,3,5-trialkylbenzenes and anilides under ambient laboratory conditions. Mechanistically, it is shown that PIDA reacts with anilides to generate a nitrenium ion or an equivalent carbenium ion which influences the second aromatic ring to be activated for C-C/C-N bond formation. Strategically, regioselective fusion of arenes to anilides is described.