Tibor András Rokob

Rationalizing the Reactivity of Frustrated Lewis Pairs: Thermodynamics of H2 Activation and the Role of Acid−Base Properties

The acid-base strengths of recently reported frustrated Lewis pairs and their relation with the thermodynamic feasibility of heterolytic hydrogen splitting reactions are analyzed in terms of quantum chemical calculations. Reaction free energies of hydrogenation processes are computed, and an energy partitioning scheme is introduced, which involves quantitative measures of the acidity and basicity of the reacting Lewis centers. Additional terms are also included that account for possible dative bond formation between the active sites and for stabilizing electrostatic interactions occurring in the product species. For intermolecular combinations of donor-acceptor components, the calculated reaction free energies are found to correlate well with the cumulative acid-base strengths. Product stabilization for these systems represents a notable contribution to the overall energetics; however, it generally shows only a slight variation for the investigated series. The reactivity of linked donor-acceptor pairs is primarily governed by acid-base properties as well, but the magnitude of stabilizing effects arising from acid-base cooperativity of active sites is also of significant importance in determining the thermodynamic feasibility of the reactions.

Expanding the scope of metal-free catalytic hydrogenation through frustrated Lewis pair design

The further development of the field of catalysis is based on the discovery, understanding, and implementation of novel activation modes that allow unprecedented transformations and open new perspectives in synthetic chemistry. In this context, the recently introduced concept of frustrated Lewis pair (FLP) from the Stephan research group represents a fundamental and novel strategy to develop catalysts based on main-group elements for small-molecule activation. These sterically encumbered Lewis acid–base systems are not able to form a stable donor–acceptor adduct, nevertheless, an intermolecular association of the Lewis acidic (LA) and basic (LB) components to a unique “frustrated complex” was proposed. Our research group has also shown that this encounter pair cleaves hydrogen in a cooperative manner and the steric congestion implies a strain, which can be directly utilized for bond activation. Using steric hindrance as a critical design element, several combinations of bulky Lewis acid–base pairs were effectively probed for heterolytic cleavage of hydrogen. Moreover, this remarkable capacity of FLPs was exploited in metal-free hydrogenation procedures. Additionally, the bifunctional and unquenched nature of the FLPs makes them capable of reacting with alkenes, dienes, acetylenes, and THF. Although this type of reactivity represents a breakthrough in main-group chemistry, its enhanced and non-orthogonal nature obviously limits the synthetic applicability of FLPs. Herein we report an attempt to develop frustrated Lewis pairs with orthogonal reactivity and improved functional-group tolerance for catalytic metal-free hydrogenation. The previously reported FLP-based hydrogen activation relied mostly on tris(pentafluorophenyl)borane (1) as the LA component. Because of the hard-type Lewis acidity of boron in 1 and its inactivation by common oxygenand/or nitrogen-containing molecules, careful substrate design was needed for successful catalytic hydrogenation reactions. This synthetic limitation triggered us to develop FLP catalysts that have a broader range of applications and possible selectivity in reduction processes. Our design concept for increased functional-group tolerance is based on the simple hypothesis that steric hindrance in FLPs is a relative phenomenon (Figure 1): further increase of

On the Mechanism of B(C6F5)3-Catalyzed Direct Hydrogenation of Imines: Inherent and Thermally Induced Frustration

The reaction mechanism for the transition metal free direct hydrogenation of bulky imines catalyzed by the Lewis acid B(C6F5)3 is investigated in detail by quantum chemical calculations. A recently introduced mechanistic model of heterolytic hydrogen splitting that is based on noncovalent association of bulky Lewis acid-base pairs is shown to account for the reactivity of imine-borane as well as amine-borane systems. Possible catalytic cycles are examined, and the results provide solid support for the imine reduction pathway proposed from experimental observations. In addition, the feasibility of an autocatalytic route initiated by amine-borane hydrogen cleavage is demonstrated. Conceptual issues regarding the notion of frustration are also discussed. The observed reactivity is interpreted in terms of thermally induced frustration, which refers to thermal activation of strained dative adducts of bulky Lewis donor-acceptor pairs to populate their reactive frustrated complex forms.

Reactivity Models of Hydrogen Activation by Frustrated Lewis Pairs: Synergistic Electron Transfers or Polarization by Electric Field?

Two alternative qualitative reactivity models have recently been proposed to interpret the facile heterolytic cleavage of H2 by frustrated Lewis pairs (FLPs). Both models assume that the reaction takes place via reactive intermediates with preorganized acid/base partners; however, they differ in the mode of action of the active centers. In the electron transfer (ET) model, the hydrogen activation is associated with synergistic electron donation processes with the simultaneous involvement of active centers and the bridging hydrogen, showing similarity to transition-metal-based and other H2-activating systems. In contrast, the electric field (EF) model suggests that the heterolytic bond cleavage occurs as a result of polarization by the strong EF present in the cavity of the reactive intermediates. To assess the applicability of the two conceptually different mechanistic views, we examined the structural and electronic rearrangements as well as the EFs along the H2 splitting pathways for a representative set of reactions. The analysis reveals that electron donations developing already in the initial phase are general characteristics of all studied reactions, and the related ET model provides qualitative interpretation for the main features of the reaction pathways. On the other hand, several arguments have emerged that cast doubt on the relevance of EF effects as a conceptual basis in FLP-mediated hydrogen activation.

Concerted attack of frustrated Lewis acid–base pairs on olefinic double bonds: a theoretical study

A computational approach reveals cooperative action of the preorganized acidic and basic centers of the frustrated P(t-Bu)(3)/B(C(6)F(5))(3) Lewis pair on olefinic bonds as the key to the observed regioselective addition reaction.

In‐Flight Epimerization of a Bis‐Tröger Base

In 1887, Julius Tr ger reported the synthesis of a nitrogen base, whose structure was determined only about 50 years later. In “Tr ger bases”, nitrogen atoms serve as chiral centers because the otherwise rapid nitrogen inversion is prevented by conformational strain. After Prelog and Wieland separated the enantiomers, the chirality and the rigid V-shape of Tr ger bases led to widespread applications in chemistry. A fundamental question in the chemistry of Tr ger bases concerns the mechanism of their pseudoepimerization, for which either a proton-catalyzed ring opening or a retro-Diels–Alder (RDA) sequence has been proposed (Scheme 1).

Hydrogen activation by frustrated lewis Pairs: Insights from computational studies

Sterically encumbered Lewis acid-base pairs, the so-called frustrated Lewis pairs, can split dihydrogen heterolytically and act as transition metal free catalysts for the hydrogenation of unsaturated compounds. Here we review the results from our quantum chemical calculations aimed at the understanding of this remarkable class of reactions and we put them into the context of related works from other research groups. The thermodynamics of the H2 splitting reaction is discussed first; the role of acid-base properties, intramolecular cooperativity, and other factors is assessed, employing an energy partitioning scheme and also in the light of the latest experimental findings. The mechanism of hydrogen cleavage is then examined, and an overview about the applicability of our reactivity model involving synergistic electron transfers between H2 and preorganized Lewis acid/base centers is given. Finally, insights about catalytic cycles in FLP-mediated hydrogenations are summarized, pinpointing the diversity of the involved elementary steps and their possible sequences.

Reactivity of the Binuclear Non-Heme Iron Active Site of Δ9 Desaturase Studied by Large-Scale Multireference Ab Initio Calculations

The results of density matrix renormalization group complete active space self-consistent field (DMRG-CASSCF) and second-order perturbation theory (DMRG-CASPT2) calculations are presented on various structural alternatives for the O-O and first C-H activating step of the catalytic cycle of the binuclear nonheme iron enzyme Δ(9) desaturase. This enzyme is capable of inserting a double bond into an alkyl chain by double hydrogen (H) atom abstraction using molecular O2. The reaction step studied here is presumably associated with the highest activation barrier along the full pathway; therefore, its quantitative assessment is of key importance to the understanding of the catalysis. The DMRG approach allows unprecedentedly large active spaces for the explicit correlation of electrons in the large part of the chemically important valence space, which is apparently conditio sine qua non for obtaining well-converged reaction energetics. The derived reaction mechanism involves protonation of the previously characterized 1,2-μ peroxy Fe(III)Fe(III) (P) intermediate to a 1,1-μ hydroperoxy species, which abstracts an H atom from the C10 site of the substrate. An Fe(IV)-oxo unit is generated concomitantly, supposedly capable of the second H atom abstraction from C9. In addition, several popular DFT functionals were compared to the computed DMRG-CASPT2 data. Notably, many of these show a preference for heterolytic C-H cleavage, erroneously predicting substrate hydroxylation. This study shows that, despite its limitations, DMRG-CASPT2 is a significant methodological advancement toward the accurate computational treatment of complex bioinorganic systems, such as those with the highly open-shell diiron active sites.

Structural and spectroscopic properties of the peroxodiferric intermediate of Ricinus communis soluble Δ9 desaturase.

Large-scale quantum and molecular mechanical methods (QM/MM) and QM calculations were carried out on the soluble Δ(9) desaturase (Δ(9)D) to investigate various structural models of the spectroscopically defined peroxodiferric (P) intermediate. This allowed us to formulate a consistent mechanistic picture for the initial stages of the reaction mechanism of Δ(9)D, an important diferrous nonheme iron enzyme that cleaves the C-H bonds in alkane chains resulting in the highly specific insertion of double bonds. The methods (density functional theory (DFT), time-dependent DFT (TD-DFT), QM(DFT)/MM, and TD-DFT with electrostatic embedding) were benchmarked by demonstrating that the known spectroscopic effects and structural perturbation caused by substrate binding to diferrous Δ(9)D can be qualitatively reproduced. We show that structural models whose spectroscopic (absorption, circular dichroism (CD), vibrational and Mössbauer) characteristics correlate best with experimental data for the P intermediate correspond to the μ-1,2-O(2)(2-) binding mode. Coordination of Glu196 to one of the iron centers (Fe(B)) is demonstrated to be flexible, with the monodentate binding providing better agreement with spectroscopic data, and the bidentate structure being slightly favored energetically (1-10 kJ mol(-1)). Further possible structures, containing an additional proton or water molecule are also evaluated in connection with the possible activation of the P intermediate. Specifically, we suggest that protonation of the peroxide moiety, possibly preceded by water binding in the Fe(A) coordination sphere, could be responsible for the conversion of the P intermediate in Δ(9)D into a form capable of hydrogen abstraction. Finally, results are compared with recent findings on the related ribonucleotide reductase and toluene/methane monooxygenase enzymes.

On the mechanism of the copper-mediated C-S bond formation in the intramolecular disproportionation of imine disulfides.

The mechanism of the copper-mediated disproportionation of aromatic imine disulfides to benzothiazoles in the gas phase is investigated by experimental and theoretical methods. Application of infrared multiphoton dissociation and hydrogen/deuterium exchange experiments combined with density functional theory (DFT) calculations of the relevant molecular structures and the associated infrared spectra allows the identification of the observed ionic intermediates. The theoretical investigation of the possible reaction pathways supported by collision-induced dissociation experiments provides a consistent mechanistic picture of the reaction catalyzed by a single copper(I) ion. Activation of the substrate proceeds via homolytic sulfur-sulfur bond cleavage, yielding metal complexes in the formal +3 oxidation state; carbon-sulfur coupling and hydrogen-atom transfer complete the transformation to the products. Exploratory studies demonstrate that in the gas phase, the disproportionation of the imine disulfide can also be mediated by other metal ions via different either homo- or heterolytic mechanisms without involving high-valent intermediates.