Palladium-Catalyzed Three-Component Reaction of Propargyl Carbonates, Isocyanides, and Alcohols or Water: Switchable Synthesis of Pyrroles and Its Bicyclic Analogues

In the presence of a catalytic amount of Pd(OAc)2 and a stoichiometric amount of tert-butylamine, the reaction of propargyl carbonates, isocyanides, and alcohols afforded polysubstituted aminopyrroles in good yields. Using water as a nucleophile instead of alcohol, the same reaction provided 1,4-dihydro-6H-furo[3,4-b]pyrrol-6-imines. A triple isocyanide insertion to the hypothetic (σ-allenyl)palladium(II) intermediate was involved in these ABC3-type multicomponent reactions. The key role of tert-butylamine was accounted for by its reaction with in situ generated carbon dioxide to form the carbamic acid, which in turn served as a nucleophile to trap the nitrilium intermediate.

New developments in iron-catalyzed carbon-carbon bond forming reactions

Chandra Mouleeswara Rao Volla

The goal of this thesis is to develop new carbon-carbon bond forming reactions using inexpensive and simple coupling partners like aryl halides (pseudohalides), sulfonyl derivatives, Grignard reagents, alkenes and alkynes with metal catalysis, preferably under environmental friendly conditions. A brief review of different cross-coupling reactions is presented applying noble metal catalysts like palladium and nickel. The importance of sustainability and hence the development of alternative iron-catalysis is discussed. The history of iron-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions and their applications to the synthesis of natural products, significant new developments in the field are visited. On our side, we have shown that 2-methylpropene-, prop-2-ene-, 1-methylprop-2-ene- and but-2-enesulfonyl chlorides can be used as electrophilic partners in palladium-catalyzed desulfinylative C-C cross-coupling reactions with both hard and soft nucleophiles. Alk-2-enesulfonate esters can also be used as electrophilic partners in allylic arylations and allylic alkylations. The regioselectivity of the reaction depends on the nature of the catalyst. With PdCl2(PhCN)2, (E)-crotylderivatives are formed with high regioselectivity using either 1-methylprop-2-ene- or but-2-enesulfonyl chlorides. We found also the alk-2-enesulfonyl chlorides that are electrophilic partners in palladium-catalyzed C-C coupling reactions can also be used as nucleophilic partners towards carbonyl compounds by Umpolung. In the presence of a catalytic amount of palladium and a transmetallating agent such as diethylzinc, sulfonyl chlorides can be coupled both with aldehydes and ketones to form homoallylic alcohols in good yields. In the case of unsymmetrical sulfonyl chlorides, regioselectivity depends on the polarity of the solvent and generates selectively products of γ-addition. Most useful is our discovery of conditions permitting the desulfinylative C-C cross-coupling of inexpensive alkanesulfonyl chlorides and Grignard reagents. Above 65 °C, the iron-catalyzed reaction generates products of C-C coupling rather than sulfones. It does not require any expensive and/or toxic ligand. This procedure was also applied to the ligand free iron-catalyzed couplings of alk-2-enesulfonyl chlorides with aromatic and aliphatic Grignard reagents. We have also discovered the synergic effect of iron and copper salts in palladium-free Sonogashira-Hagihara cross-coupling reaction of a wide range of aryl iodides, aromatic and aliphatic alkynes. Together with Dr. R. Loska we have studied the iron-catalyzed Mizoroki-Heck cross-coupling reaction with styrenes. In the presence of iron(II) chloride and potassium tert-butoxide in dimethyl sulfoxide, aryl and heteroaryl iodides undergo stereoselective Mizoroki–Heck C-C cross-coupling reactions with electron-rich alkenes at 60 °C giving the corresponding (E)-alkenes. The best yields were obtained upon addition of a ligand such as proline or picolinic acid. Aryl bromides and pyridinyl bromides are also coupled with styrenes but in lower yields. Finally, we have explored iron-catalyzed C-H activation. Ligand and solvent free-conditions have been developed for the iron-catalyzed oxidative C-C cross-coupling of tertiary amines and terminal alkynes. FeCl2 catalyzes the coupling to generate propargylamines using tert-butylperoxide as oxidant. High chemoselectivity was observed for the aminomethyl group and was attributed to a steric factor.

EPFL2009

Palladium Catalysed Intramolecular Carbo-oxygenation of Propargylic Amines to Access 1,2-Amino Alcohols and alpha-Amino Ketones via in situ Tether Formation

Phillip Gulliver Dominic Greenwood

a-Amino ketones and 1,2-amino alcohols are important structural motifs in organic chemistry, that can be observed in natural products, pharmaceutically and bioactive compounds. For these reasons, they constitute privileged targets for the development of new and effective synthetic methods. The dual-functionalisation of unsaturated carbon-carbon bonds is a powerful approach to access these crucial motifs. In this context, Pd catalysis has been comprehensively investigated and has consistently demonstrated its capability. Methods enabling the concomitant formation of a carbonâ heteroatom and a carbonâcarbon bond are highly valuable, but the challenges of intermolecular reactions have led to the development of tether systems that require additional steps for their introduction and removal. In situ tethering strategies have previously been explored within the Waser group to circumvent these limitations. This approach relies on a one-pot, three component, Pd catalysed carboetherification or amination reaction, leading to rapidly increase in complexity of simple substrates. So far, the in situ methodologies developed by the Waser group have focused on the functionalisation of alkenes from allylic amines and alcohols. In this regard, the goal of my PhD was to expand the in situ tethering methodologies established within the Waser group, to the synthesis of a-amino ketones and 1,2-amino alcohols. Specifically, my focus was on the formation a trifluoromethyl hemiaminal with a propargylic amine and using the resulting aminal to direct the oxyalkynylation and oxyarylation of the alkyne substrate via a Pd catalysed transformation. Upon optimisation, the reaction of a protected terminal propargylamine, trifluoroacetaldehyde ethyl hemiacetal and silylbromoacetylene using a Pd0 complex with DPEPhos as the catalytic system and Cs2CO3 as the base gave the desired oxazolidine alkenes in high yields and E:Z selectivity. Substrates with substitution on the terminal position and at the propargylic required a change of ligand and base. The transformation was broadly tolerant towards substitution on the nitrogen and the alkyne. An oxyarylative variant was also developed, using Ruphos as ligand, and worked well with a range of iodoarene partners. The obtained oxazolidines could be conveniently orthogonally deprotected to access the a-amino ketone and terminal alkyne; the hydrogenation of the unsaturated oxazolidines has allowed access to 1,2-amino alcohol scaffolds and the application of gold catalysis converted the enyne-oxazolidine system into trisubstituted silyl furans. The identification of a sideproduct of the oxyalkynylation process led to the development of a carboxy-alkynylation reaction using a "CO2" unit derived from the carbonate base. Optimisation established CsHCO3 to the best base/"CO2" source, using DPEPhos as ligand. This transformation gave convenient access to diverse library of cyclic carbamates. Work is ongoing to achieve an enantioselective oxyarylation using chiral phosphine ligands. The asymmetric synthesis of oxazolidines, followed by the diastereoselective alkene hydrogenation and subsequent tether removal would allow the stereodivergent access to interesting diarylalkyl-1,2- amino alcohols. Most recently, the product was synthesised in 66% yield, with 66%ee using commercially available Trost ligand.

EPFL2020

New Strategies for the Functionalization of Alkenes Exploiting Tethering Chemistry and Ring Strain

Bastian Antoine Rodolphe Claude Muriel

Amino alcohols, cyclopropanes and nitriles are privileged structural motifs found in the scaffold of natural products and bioactive compounds. In addition, they are versatile building blocks in organic chemistry. The development of new and increasingly efficient synthetic methods to access these chemical motifs from readily available feedstocks is therefore highly desirable. In this context, alkenes have been substrates of choice to rapidly access complex molecules, as two new functionalities can be installed across their double bond. To achieve such transformations, palladium catalysis and radical chemistry stand as two of the most efficient strategies. In this thesis, a new palladium-catalyzed carboamination of allylic alcohols using a trifluoroacetaldehyde-based tether was first investigated. The tether could be easily installed on diverse allylic alcohol substrates, the formed hemiaminals underwent in high yield and diastereoselectivities the desired transformation under optimized conditions. Both alkynyl- and aryl-bromides could be used as electrophilic partners in the reaction. For the latter, in order to supress a competitive Heck-pathway, a new phosphine-based ligand âFuXPhosâ had to be developped and was key to reach high yields for the aminoarylation in combination with CsOTf as additive. The tether in the obtained products could be cleaved under acidic conditions delivering valuable amino alcohol derivatives. This difunctionalization strategy mediated by palladium was then applied to the strained alkene of cyclopropenes. While preliminary results for the intramolecular carbo-amination and carbo-etherification of cyclopropenes could be obtained, the difficulty to access the starting materials for these transformations led to consider a more convergent approach to access functionalized cyclopropanes. Using radical chemistry, a novel synthesis of bicyclo[3.1.0]hexanes could be developed, by a (3+2) annulation of cyclopropylanilines with cyclopropenes mediated by photoredox. The scope of the transformation was broad for both reaction partners, but the products were obtained with low diastereoselectivities. It was found that by combining difluorocyclopropenes with a bulky aromatic N-substituent on the cyclopropylamine, the corresponding fluorinated bicyclo[3.1.0]hexanes could be accessed in good yields and diastereoselectivities under slightly re-optimized conditions. Finally, the possibility to achieve an amination reaction of cyclopropenes using N-centered radicals was investigated. It was discovered that the addition of azidyl radicals to the double bond of cyclopropenes under photoredox conditions led to the formation of two new products coming from an unexpected ring cleavage: an alkenyl nitrile and a quinoline. While the formation of the quinoline product could not be optimized above 47% yield, conditions could be found for the selective formation of the alkenyl nitrile in high yields using cheap and commercial reagents. Through the scope investigations it was discovered that an aryl-substituent on the double bond of the cyclopropene substrates was necessary for the transformation to proceed. Despite this limitation various substrates could be engaged in the transformation and delivered the corresponding alkenyl nitriles in high yields. With 1,2-diaryl substituted cyclopropenes a synthesis of valuable polycyclic aromatic compounds could be developed, through a one pot radical amination / oxidative cyclization.

EPFL2021