Carbene complexes preparation

Asymmetric versions of the cyclopropanation reaction of electron-deficient olefins using chirally modified Fischer carbene complexes, prepared by exchange of CO ligands with chiral bisphosphites [21a] or phosphines [21b], have been tested. However, the asymmetric inductions are rather modest [21a] or not quantified (only the observation that the cyclopropane is optically active is reported) [21b]. Much better facial selectivities are reached in the cyclopropanation of enantiopure alkenyl oxazolines with aryl- or alkyl-substituted alkoxy-carbene complexes of chromium [22] (Scheme 5). 

Gold carbene complexes preparation, oxidation, and ligand displacement. Journal of Organometallic Chemistry,... 

Table 2.1. Heteroatom-substituted carbene complexes prepared from carbonyl complexes and carbon nucleophiles.

Several carbene complexes prepared by the first route are sufficiently stable to be isolated and characterized. However, the cationic complexes prepared by the second and third methods are quite reactive species that usually cannot be isolated and for which only partial characterization has been possible through special spectroscopic techniques. Exceptions are those complexes bearing substituents R or R1 that are good cation-stabilizing groups. Consequently, these cationic carbene complexes are most commonly generated in situ from their precursors in the presence of the substrates desired for further reactions. 

The early development of Mechanism 3 was bold for its day because Fischer carbene complexes had just been discovered a few years earlier, and alkylidenes were not yet known. The carbene complexes prepared before 1971 also did not catalyze olefin metathesis. With the discovery of Schrock carbene complexes and the demonstration that some alkylidenes could promote metathesis, the non-pairwise mechanism became more plausible (Section 11-1-2). It was, however, the elegant work of Katz and co-workers that provided early substantial support for the Herisson-Chauvin mechanism. 

Recently, the present authors have achieved a facile recycling method for both catalyst and reachon medium using F-626 in a Mizoroki-Heck arylation reaction of acrylic acids [11]. The procedure employed a fluorous carbene complex, prepared in situ from a fluorous imidazolium salt, palladium acetate as the catalyst and F-626 as a single reaction medium. When acrylic acid was used as a substrate, separation of the product from the reaction mixture was performed simply by filtration with a small amount of FC-72. The FC-72 solution containing the fluorous Pd-catalyst and F-626 was evaporated and the residue containing the catalyst and F-626 (96% recovery) can be recycled for the next run (Scheme 3.5-6). They tried to reuse the catalyst, and observed no loss of catalytic activity in five re-use cycles. 

An easy recycling method involving both catalyst and reaction medium was achieved in a Mizoroki-Heck arylation reaction of acrylic acid, using a fluorous carbene complex (prepared in situ fl om a fluorous ionic liquid and palladium acetate) as the catalyst and a fluorous ether solvent (F-626) as the reaction medium. Because of the very low solubility of arylated carboxylic acids in F-626, the products precipitated during the course of the reaction. After separation of the products and amine salts by filtration, the filtrate, which contained the fluorous Pd catalyst, could be recycled for several runs (Scheme 13). The Mizoroki-Heck reaction was effectively promoted by a fluorous SCS pincer palladium, which is discussed in Section 3.4.5. 

Another good ligand is carbene XVI-6, and its derivatives. Synthesis of these carbene ligands is rather simple. Pd-carbene complexes prepared in situ are active catalysts. For example, reaction of chlorotoluene with A-methylaniline was carried out at 100 °C using the imidazol-2-ylidene complex XVI-2 to give 23 in... 

As stated in Chapter 3, carbene complexes can be divided into the five classes illustrated in Figure 13.2. One class of carbene complex encompasses the Fischer carbenes that were first prepared in the laboratory of E. O. Fischer. These complexes were the first transition metal carbene complexes prepared, and they contain a ir-donating group on the carbene carbon. Complexes of these carbenes are typically electrophilic at the carbene carbon. A second class of carbene complex was first prepared by Richard Schrock. These complexes contain alkyl groups or hydrogens on the carbene carbon and are called alkylidene complexes or often "Schrock carbenes." Complexes of these carbenes are typically electrophilic at the metal and nucleophilic at the carbene carbon. 

The original ruthenium carbene complexes prepared by Grubbs, Ru-1 and Ru-2, see eqn. (15), have served very well to effect numerous RCM and ROMP reactions. Nevertheless, the race is on to find even better ruthenium complexes that are either more stable or will catalyze metathesis of an even wider range of substrates. Amongst these are 11-14. 

Many other organometaUic compounds also react with carbonyl groups. Lithium alkyls and aryls add to the ester carbonyl group to give either an alcohol or an olefin. Lithium dimethyl cuprate has been used to prepare ketones from esters (41). Tebbe s reagent, Cp2TiCH2AlCl(CH2)2, where Cp = clyclopentadienyl, and other metal carbene complexes can convert the C=0 of esters to C=CR2 (42,43). 

Trifluoromethyl-substituted diazonium betaines [176]. Synthetic routes to trifluoromethyl-substituted diazo alkanes, such as 2,2,2-trifluorodiazoethane [ 177, 7 78, 179] and alkyl 3,3,3-trifluoro-2-diazopropionates [24], have been developed Rhodium-catalyzed decomposition of 3,3,3-tnfluoro-2-diazopropionates offers a simple preparative route to highly reactive carbene complexes, which have an enormous synthetic potential [24] [3-1-2] Cycloaddition reactions were observed on reaction with nitnles to give 5-alkoxy-4-tnfluoromethyloxazoles [750] (equation 41)... 

Co-condensation reaction of the vapors of l,3-di-rcrt-butylimidazol-2-ylidene and nickel, palladium, or platinum gives the coordinatively unsaturated 14-electron sandwiches [L M] (M=Ni, Pd, Pt) of the carbene type (990M3228). Palladium(O) carbene complexes can also be prepared by the direct interaction of l,3-R2-imidazol-2-ylidenes (R=/-Pr, r-Bu, Cy, Mes) (L) with the palladium(O) compound [Pd(P(o-Tol)3)2] (OOJOM(595)186), and the product at the first stage is [(L)PdP(o-Tol)3l, and then in excess free carbene [PdL ]. 

Free carbenes based on 1,2,4-triazole are not as numerous as those based on imidazole (70ZN(B)1421, 95AGE1021, 97JA6668, 98JA9100). The carbene complex 169 (Ar = Ph, p-Tol) is prepared by the [3 + 2] cycloaddition route from [W(CO)j(C+=NC-HCOOEt)]- and aryldiazonium (930M3241). Oxidative decomplexation causes tautomerization of the 1,2,4-triazole ligand, the products being 170 (Ar= Ph, i-Tol). 

The synthetic value of the Dotz reaction has for example been demonstrated by the synthesis of vitamin Ki(20) 10 (simplified structure). This natural product has been prepared synthetically from the chromium carbene complex 8 and the alkyne 9 in two steps the second step being the oxidative decomplexation to yield the free product 10 ... 

Chromium carbene complexes like 13, which are called Fischer carbene complexes, can conveniently be prepared from chromium hexacarbonyl 11 and an organolithium compound 12, followed by an O-alkylation step ... 

In the light of these results, it becomes important to question whether a particular catalytic result obtained in a transition metal-catalyzed reaction in an imidazolium ionic liquid is caused by a metal carbene complex formed in situ. The following simple experiments can help to verify this in more detail a) variation of ligands in the catalytic system, b) application of independently prepared, defined metal carbene complexes, and c) investigation of the reaction in pyridinium-based ionic liquids. If the reaction shows significant sensitivity to the use of different ligands, if the application of the independently prepared, defined metal-carbene complex... 

Due to the high a-C,H acidity in the alkoxyethylidene complexes 6 (e.g.,piCa=8 (R=Me)) [ 16], transformations via an enolate analog are possible and have been used to introduce additional functionality into the carbene side chain to access various Fischer carbene complexes [3]. The a,/J-unsaturated complex 8 could be obtained from 6 (R=Et) by an aldol-type condensation with benzaldehyde 7 in the presence of triethylamine and trimethylsilyl chloride (Scheme 2) [17]. This reaction proceeds completely diastereoselectively to yield only the trans-isomer. Analogously, binuclear complexes have been prepared from 6 and 1,3-and 1,4-phthaldialdehyde in good yields [17]. This type of condensation has... 

Diamino-substituted complexes of type 37 were first obtained by Fischer et al. [12] in two steps via the 1,2-addition-elimination product 34 from di-methylamine and 35 (Scheme 6). The (3-aminoallenylidene)chromium complexes 36, which can be prepared either from 33 [47,48] or directly from 35 [33], can also be transformed to l,3-bis(dialkylamino)-substituted complexes of type 37 (e.g., R2=z Pr) by treatment with dimethylamine in excellent yields [33]. Although the complex 37 is accessible by further reaction of the complex 34 with dimethylamine, and 34 itself stems from the reaction of 35 with dimethylamine, the direct transformation of 33 to 37 could not be achieved [12]. In spite of this, heterocyclic carbene complexes with two nitrogens were obtained by reactions of alkynylcarbene complexes 35 with hydrazine [49] and 1,3-diamines [50]. 

In 20 years of usage, a,/J-unsaturated Fischer carbene complexes demonstrated their multitalented versatility in organic synthesis, yet new reaction types are still being discovered every year. In view of their facile preparation and multifold reactivity, their versatile chemistry will undoubtedly be further developed and applied in years to come. The application of chirally modified Fischer carbene complexes in asymmetric synthesis has only begun, and it will probably be an important area of research in the near future. 

The 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions are a powerful kind of reaction for the preparation of functionalised five-membered heterocycles [42]. In the field of Fischer carbene complexes, the a,/ -unsaturated derivatives have been scarcely used in cyclo additions with 1,3-dipoles in contrast with other types of cyclo additions [43]. These complexes have low energy LUMOs, due to the electron-acceptor character of the pentacarbonyl metal fragment, and hence, they react with electron-rich dipoles with high energy HOMOs. 

Other miscellaneous imines that underwent photoreaction with chromium alkoxycarbenes include iminodithiocarbonates [33],the mono-N-phenylimine of benzil and the bis-JV-phenyl imine of acetoin [20]. By preparing the chromium carbene complex from 13CO-labeled chromium hexacarbonyl, /J-lactams with two adjacent 13C labels were synthesized [34]. 

Van der Schaaf et al. described a synthesis of the 14-electron complex [RuHCl(PPr13)2] (32) from [RuCl2(COD)]A.,PPr31,isopropanol,and abase.Compound 32 is a suitable precursor for ruthenium carbene complex 33, as outlined in Scheme 10. Although 32 was isolated and structurally characterized, it may also be generated in situ for the preparation of the carbene complex 33 [18]. 

Ruthenium hydride complexes, e.g., the dimer 34, have been used by Hofmann et al. for the preparation of ruthenium carbene complexes [19]. Reaction of 34 with two equivalents of propargyl chloride 35 gives carbene complex 36 with a chelating diphosphane ligand (Eq. 3). Complex 36 is a remarkable example because its phosphine ligands are, in contrast to the other ruthenium carbene complexes described so far, arranged in a fixed cis stereochemistry. Although 36 was found to be less active than conventional metathesis catalysts, it catalyzes the ROMP of norbornene or cyclopentene. 

Scheme 10 Ruthenium carbene complexes from ruthenium hydride species prepared in situ [18]...

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