Chiral zirconium catalyst system

The isotacticities and activities achieved with nonbridged metallocene catalyst precursors were low. Partially isotactic polypropylene has been obtained by using a catalyst system of unbridged (non-ansa type) metallocenes at low temperatures [65]. A chiral zirconocene complex such as rac-ZrCl2(C5H4 CHMePh)2 (125) is the catalyst component for the isospecific polymerization of propylene (mmmm 0.60, 35% of type 1 and 65% of type 2 in Scheme Y) [161]. More bulky metallocene such as bis(l-methylfluorenyl)zirconium dichloride (126) together with MAO polymerized propylene to isotactic polypropylene in a temperature range between 40 and 70°C [162]. 

When a chiral ansa-type zirconocene/MAO system was used as the catalyst precursor for polymerization of 1,5-hexadiene, an main-chain optically active polymer (68% trans rings) was obtained84-86. The enantioselectivity for this cyclopolymerization can be explained by the fact that the same prochiral face of the olefins was selected by the chiral zirconium center (Eq. 12) [209-211]. Asymmetric hydrogenation, as well as C-C bond formation catalyzed by chiral ansa-metallocene 144, has recently been developed to achieve high enantioselectivity88-90. This parallels to the high stereoselectivity in the polymerization. 

In 1997, the first truly catalytic enantioselective Mannich reactions of imines with silicon enolates using a novel zirconium catalyst was reported [9, 10]. To solve the above problems, various metal salts were first screened in achiral reactions of imines with silylated nucleophiles, and then, a chiral Lewis acid based on Zr(IV) was designed. On the other hand, as for the problem of the conformation of the imine-Lewis acid complex, utilization of a bidentate chelation was planned imines prepared from 2-aminophenol were used [(Eq. (1)]. This moiety was readily removed after reactions under oxidative conditions. Imines derived from heterocyclic aldehydes worked well in this reaction, and good to high yields and enantiomeric excesses were attained. As for aliphatic aldehydes, similarly high levels of enantiomeric excesses were also obtained by using the imines prepared from the aldehydes and 2-amino-3-methylphenol. The present Mannich reactions were applied to the synthesis of chiral (3-amino alcohols from a-alkoxy enolates and imines [11], and anti-cc-methyl-p-amino acid derivatives from propionate enolates and imines [12] via diastereo- and enantioselective processes [(Eq. (2)]. Moreover, this catalyst system can be utilized in Mannich reactions using hydrazone derivatives [13] [(Eq. (3)] as well as the aza-Diels-Alder reaction [14-16], Strecker reaction [17-19], allylation of imines [20], etc. 

Chiral zirconocene complexes have also been studied as catalysts for the hydrogenation of nonfunctionalized olefins115. Using homogeneous Ziegler Natta-type catalyst systems derived from [ethylenebis(4,5.6,7-tetrahydro-l-indenyl)]zirconium complexes and methyl aluminoxane [A1(CH3)0] , 2-phenyl-l-butene was hydrogenated in 36% optical yield (20 bar H2, benzene, 25 °C). Under the same conditions, the reaction of styrene with D2 gave optically active 1,2-dideuteroethylbenzene with 65% ee. 

In parallel with the search for catalytic systems, has emerged an impressive amount of results in the field of enantioselective allylation. The pioneering work of Marshall using a chiral (acyloxy)borane (CAB) system [216] was readily followed by titanium/BINOL catalysts [217], leading to homoallylic alcohols with enantiomeric excess up to 98%. An extension of this work in fluorous phase was also developed with 6,6 -perfluoroalkylated BINOLs [218]. Replacing the titanium by zirconium (IV) salts, led to more reactive catalyst for the allylation of aromatic and aliphatic aldehydes [219]. One of the more active catalyst is the zirconium-BINOL system associated with 4-tert-butylcalix [4]arene, which remains active with only 2% of the chiral inductor [220]. The use of activators, such as iPrSSiMe3, iPrSBEt2,... 

Given the importance of chiral amines to synthetic chemistry as well as other fields asymmetric hydrogenation of imines has attracted wide interest but limited success compared to C=C and C=0 bond reduction. The first asymmetric hydrogenation of imines was carried out in the seventies with mthenium- and rhodium-based catalysts, followed later by titanium and zirconium systems [82]. Buchwald found that... 

Lin and coworkers have reported zirconium phosphonate-derived Ru-BINAP systems (Scheme 16) [49]. Zirconium phosphonate-based chiral porous hybrid materials containing the Ru(BINAP)(diamine)Cl2 precatalysts showed excellent enantioselectivity (up to 99.2% ee) in the asymmetric hydrogenation of aromatic ketones. These catalysts were also readily recovered by centrifugation and reused for up to 10 times without significant loss of catalyst activity and enantioselectivity. Related zirconium phosphonates containing Ru(BINAP)(DMF)2Cl2 precatalysts were successfully used for asymmetric hydrogenation of p-keto esters with up to 95% ee [50]. 

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