Cobalt complexes nitriles

In the context of pyridin synthesis from alkynes and nitriles homogeneously catalyzed by (cyclopentadienyl)cobalt complexes (Eq. 13), it was found that electron-withdrawing groups on the cyclopentadienyl ring significantly increase the activity [63]. During the screening of various cobalt half-sandwich complexes... 

Organocobalt complexes catalyze the cyelocotrimerization of acetylenes and nitriles, which affords pyridine and benzene derivatives (100). (Cyclo-pentadienyl)cobalt complexes such as CoCp(COD) favor pyridine formation (100), and modification of the Cp ligand has considerable influence on the activity of the catalyst and the chemo- and regioselectivity of the catalytic process (101). 

The benzyl ligand of benzylbis(dimethylglyoximato)pyridine cobalt complex has been selectively converted to 3,5-dibenzyl-l,2,4-oxadiazole by a reaction with alkyl nitrite in the presence of light (426). The reaction proceeds by the in situ formation of an oxime and a nitrile oxide (Scheme 1.44). 

In addition to OH , other nucleophiles such as BH4 ,318 CN-319,320 and N3-321 also add at the nitrile carbon of cobalt(III)-nitrile complexes at rates which are = 104 times those of the corresponding reactions of the free ligands. Catalysis by C032 in the hydration of [(NH3)5RuNCMe]3+,316 and of the acrylonitrile complex [(NH3)5CoNCCH=CH2]3+,322 has been observed. In the latter complex, a direct nucleophilic pathway results in the incorporation of oxygen from C032 into the amide product with elimination of C02. 

Yamazaki et al. (91, 119) and Bonnemann el at. (120) have recently reported catalytic syntheses of substituted pyridines from acetylenes and nitriles. Various cobalt complexes serve as active catalysts, in particular, CpCo(PPh3)2 (91) or Co(C8Hi2) (C8Hi3) (120). Similar reactions of acetylenes with CS2 or RNCS also give new heterocycles (91) ... 

Chlorodiphenylacetonitrile formed tetraphenylsuccinonitrile as well as a diflFerent type of complex. The infrared spectrum of the latter contained no nitrile absorption band (2210 cm." ) but exhibited a cyanide stretch at 2130 cm. S characteristic of inorganic pentacyanocobaltate(III) complexes 14,22), and a carbonyl band at 1575 cm. Its PMR spectrum indicated the presence of the (C6H5).)CH group. Diphenylacetamide precipitated on heating an aqueous solution of the complex. Apparently the resonance-stabilized radical initially formed in the reaction of this a-halonitrile with pentacyanocobaltate(II) may either dimerize or combine with pentacyanocobaltate(II) to form an N-keteniminocobalt complex. The latter is unstable in water, being converted to an N-amido-cobalt complex, which may be further hydrolyzed to the free amide (Reaction 23, paths d and e). Presumably the radical cannot add penta-... 

Alkylcobalts form in stoichiometric reactions of pentacyanocobalt(III) hydride and alkenes. This reaction occurs both for halogenated alkenes such as tetrafluoroethylene and for alkenes that contain other electron-withdrawing groups such as carbonyls, nitriles and arenes as substituents (see Table 6) . The addition is regiospedfic, forming the more substituted alkylcobalt. Prior coordination of alkene to cobalt to form an alkene(hydrido)cobalt complex, an intermediate in hydrometalation reactions, is not important. This reaction is a radical process however, by NMR, additions of [HCo(CN)5 ] " to diastereomeric alkenes such as fumaric and maleic add salts lead to a cr-alkylcobalt by stereospecific cis addition of Co and H to the double bond . The overall reduction is not stereospecific. (r-Alkylcobalt bond formation proceeds by either a concerted addition or a rapid collapse of a radical cage. 

Likewise when two alkyne molecules coordinate to a transition metal such as Co(I) with subsequent coupling of the C-C bond, oxidative cyclization takes place to give a metallacyclopentadiene. Further reaction of another alkyne molecule with the metallacyclopentadiene followed by reductive elimination liberates benzene derivatives. Thus cyclotrimerization of three alkyne molecules catalyzed by a cobalt complex [40,41] can be performed. If a nitrile is used as the second component, pyridine derivatives are obtained catalytically as shown in Scheme 1.13 [42]. The catalytic cyclotrimerization and cyclodimerization of alkynes and conjugated enynes have found extensive applications in synthesis of complex cyclic compounds such as steroid derivatives [43]. 

Additionally, acetylene may be also cocyclized with nitriles to form substituted pyridines using Co - zeolites as with soluble cobaltous complexes. Only Co is active in this reaction which needs an insertion of the nitrile into the M pentacycle. Apparently this is the element that enables competition of the nitrile with acetylene. It also appeared that the cobalt centers had to swing between the trivalent and monovalent states (45). The use of substituted acetylenes showed that the 2-, 5-substituted pyridines are significantly favoured by comparison with homogeneous media. 

N-vinylpyrrolidone) (PNVP) and amphiphilic PVA-h-PAN [33, 48). Hydrolysis of both the esters and the nitrile groups of the PVAc-h-PAN copolymers paved the way to a well-defined, pH-sensitive PAA-h-PVA compound [48, 50). Despite the low polyolefin content of the final material, 1-octene was used successfully as the comonomers of VAc in the block, and statistical radical polymerization processes were carried out in the presence of cobalt complexes [51]. Moreover, the resumption of styrene polymerization from a PVAc-Co(acac)2 macroinitiator was also considered, which led to the expected PVAc-b-polystyrene (PS) copolymer unfortunately, however, a poor control of the styrene block was observed in this case [52]. 

Among transition-metal complex catalyzed reactions of alkynes with carbon-heteroatom unsaturated compounds the most studied is co-cyclotrimer-ization of alkynes with nitriles to pyridines. For this process the same complexes can be used as for the cyclotrimerization of alkynes. The first report of a cyclopentadienylcobalt complex catalyzed co-cyclotrimerization of alkynes with nitriles appeared in 1973 [92] and was soon followed by other papers [93]. Co-cyclotrimerization of alkynes and nitriles with all its aspects has been recently reviewed [94] and because of that we will focus only on recent developments in this area. In this regard, advances have been made in simple co-cy-clotrimerization of ethyne with various nitriles [95], combinatorial synthesis of substituted pyridines [96], and co-cyclotrimerization of hydroxyalkynes with nitriles in aqueous media catalyzed by cobalt complex with hydrophobic chain attached to the cyclopentadienyl ring [97]. 

Several synthetic Co(III) and Fe(III) complexes have been generated as models for the active-site metal center in nitrile hydratases [8, 10]. However, few have been examined in terms of water coordination and acidity. Cobalt complexes supported by Ns-type donor ligands, with two carboxamido nitrogen donors, exhibit a pfCa near 7 (Fig. 8.14a and b) [59, 60]. Introduction of two thiolate sulfur donors into the Co(III) coordination sphere increases the pK of the bound water to 8.3 (Fig. 8.14c) [61]. Interestingly, oxidation of one of the sulfur donors to a S-bound sulfmate (Fig. 8.14d) reduces the pK by around 1 unit [62]. As the active-site metal center in nitrile hydratases contain oxidatively modified cysteine residues coordinated to the metal center [8], it has been suggested that the oxidized sulfur donors play a role in modulating the acidity of the metal-bound water molecule. 

Alkyne-nitrile cyclotrimerization is a powerful synthetic methodology for the synthesis of complex heterocyclic aromatic molecules.118 Recently, Fatland et al. developed an aqueous alkyne-nitrile cyclotrimerization of one nitrile with two alkynes for the synthesis of highly functionalized pyridines by a water-soluble cobalt catalyst (Eq. 4.62). The reaction was chemospecific and several different functional groups such as unprotected alcohols, ketones, and amines were compatible with the reaction.119 In addition, photocatalyzed [2+2+2] alkyne or alkyne-nitrile cyclotrimerization in water120 and cyclotrimerization in supercritical H2O110121 have been reported in recent years. 

In 1989, Isayama and Mukaiyama reported a related Co-catalyzed coupling reaction that employs a,b-unsaturated nitriles, amides, and esters with PhSiLb as a hydrogen source [9]. Cobalt-bis(diketonato) complex, Co(II)(dpm)2 [dpm = bis(dipivaloylmethanato)] (5mol%), exhibited high catalytic activity at 20 °C in the coupling of excess acrylonitrile and ben-zaldehyde to provide b-hydroxy nitrile 4 in 93% yield (syn anti = 50 50) (Scheme 5). N,N-Dimethylacrylamide and methyl cinnamate both reacted... 

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