Viviana Dorn

Electron-Transfer-Mediated Synthesis of Phenanthridines by Intramolecular Arylation of Anions from N-(ortho-Halobenzyl)arylamines: Regiochemical and Mechanistic Analysis

The synthesis of a series of substituted phenanthridines by photostimulated C-C cyclization of anions from N-(ortho-halobenzyl)arylamines has been found to proceed in very good to excellent yields (79-95%) in liquid ammonia and in DMSO. The N-(ortho-halobenzyl)arylamines are obtained in good to very good isolated yields (44-85%) by nucleophilic substitution of ortho-halobenzylchlorides with different arylamines. The reaction of the anions of a diverse set of N-(ortho-halobenzyl)arylamines was studied, and the methodology was extended to the synthesis of trispheridine, a natural product, in very good yield. In order to explain the regiochemical outcome of these reactions, a theoretical analysis was performed with DFT methods and the B3LYP functional.

Mild bottom-up synthesis of indium(0) nanoparticles: characterization and application in the allylation of carbonyl compounds

Very reactive, monodisperse (4.0 ± 0.5 nm) spherical indium(0) nanoparticles have been generated in situ, in a simple, mild and efficient way, by fast reduction of commercially available indium(III) chloride with lithium sand and a catalytic amount of 4,4′-di-tert-butylbiphenyl (DTBB) in THF, at room temperature, and in the absence of any anti-agglomeration additives or ligands. The as-synthesized bare InNPs were applied for the allylation of a variety of aldehydes and ketones. For most of the compounds tested, the corresponding homoallylic alcohols were obtained as the major product in good to excellent yield.

Influence of structural features of tri-functionalized aryl phosphates on the outcome of the SRN1 process with stannyl anions: a DFT study

Under irradiation, 1,3-bis(diethoxyphosphoryloxy)-4-chlorobenzene (2), 1,4-bis(diethoxyphosphoryloxy)-3-chlorobenzene (3) and 1,3-bis(diethoxyphosphoryloxy)-5-chlorobenzene (4) react with trimethyltinsodium (1) in liquid ammonia giving entirely different distribution of stannylated products. These differences are explained through theoretical DFT studies. Experimental evidence for the involvement of an SRN1 mechanism was obtained.

Hydrophosphorylation of aliphatic alkynes catalyzed by CuNPs/ZnO for the synthesis of vinyl phosphonates. A DFT study on the reaction mechanism

The reaction mechanism of the CuNPs/ZnO-catalyzed hydrophosphorylation of aliphatic alkynes for the synthesis of vinyl phosphonates has been investigated. Based on experimental observations and theoretical calculations through DFT studies, a reaction mechanism is proposed, in which a crucial role of both the solvent and the catalyst support is suggested. DFT studies and experimental data, are consistent with a reaction mechanism based on a copper-catalyzed anti-Markovnikov hydrophosphorylation process that favours the formation of the vinyl phosphonate E isomer.

Experimental and DFT study on the indium-mediated synthesis of benzophenones via arylstannanes

Experimental results of the solvent-free, indium-promoted reaction of aroyl chlorides with arylstannanes showed a narrow scope; its efficiency depends both on the extent of methylation in the latter and on the nature, number and position of the substituents in the former. With the purpose of explaining experimental results, a theoretical analysis with DFT methods was performed for a set of selected cases.