Mechanism reductive coupling

Many anodic oxidations involve an ECE pathway. For example, the neurotransmitter epinephrine can be oxidized to its quinone, which proceeds via cyclization to leukoadrenochrome. The latter can rapidly undergo electron transfer to form adrenochrome (5). The electrochemical oxidation of aniline is another classical example of an ECE pathway (6). The cation radical thus formed rapidly undergoes a dimerization reaction to yield an easily oxidized p-aminodiphenylamine product. Another example (of industrial relevance) is the reductive coupling of activated olefins to yield a radical anion, which reacts with the parent olefin to give a reducible dimer (7). If the chemical step is very fast (in comparison to the electron-transfer process), the system will behave as an EE mechanism (of two successive charge-transfer steps). Table 2-1 summarizes common electrochemical mechanisms involving coupled chemical reactions. Powerful cyclic voltammetric computational simulators, exploring the behavior of virtually any user-specific mechanism, have... 

The general mechanism of coupling reactions of aryl-alkenyl halides with organometallic reagents and nucleophiles is shown in Fig. 9.4. It contains (a) oxidative addition of aryl-alkenyl halides to zero-valent transition metal catalysts such as Pd(0), (b) transmetallation of organometallic reagents to transition metal complexes, and (c) reductive elimination of coupled product with the regeneration of the zero-valent transition metal catalyst. 

Scheme 2 Mechanism of the electrochemical or metal-promoted reductive coupling of imines in an acidic medium...

A broad array of mechanistic pathways may be considered in the different variants of nickel-catalyzed reductive couplings of aldehydes and alkynes, and a generalized overview of possible mechanisms has been previously described [10]. Whereas a comprehensive mechanistic study has not been presented, a number of key observations have been illustrated that provide insight into how the nickel-catalyzed reductive couplings of aldehydes and alkynes proceed. It should be stressed at the outset that the different reaction variants may proceed by different mechanisms. 

Abstract Significant advances have been made in the study of catalytic reductive coupling of alkenes and alkynes over the past 10 years. This work will discuss the progress made in early transition metal and lanthanide series catalytic processes using alkyl metals or silanes as the stoichiometric reductants and the progress made in the use of late transition metals for the same reactions using silanes, stannanes and borohydrides as the reductant. The mechanisms for the reactions are discussed along with stereoselective variants of the reactions. 

Waymouth and coworkers used chiral zirconocene complexes such as 56 with Et3Al as the stoichiometric reductant to enantioselectively desymmeter-ize oxabicyclic compounds (Scheme 9) [29]. A reductive coupling mechanism to give 57 followed by (i-alkoxidc ring opening and transmetallation is consistent with the experimental results. Neither direct insertion of the alkene into the M - C bond nor nucleophilic attack mechanisms can be ruled out, however [12]. 

A crystal structure of the C02 derivative of (8), K[Co(salen)( 71-C02)], haso been reported in which the Co—C bond is 1.99 A, the C—O bonds are both equivalent at 1.22 A and the O-C-O angle is 132°.125 Carboxylation of benzylic and allylic chlorides with C02 in THF-HMPA was achieved with (8) electrogenerated by controlled-potential electrolysis,126 in addition to reductive coupling of methyl pyruvate, diethyl ketomalonate and / -tolylcarbodiimide via C—C bond formation. Methyl pyruvate is transformed into diastereomeric tartrates concomitant with oxidation to the divalent Co(salen) and a free-radical mechanism is proposed involving the homolytic cleavage of the Co—C bond. However, reaction with diphenylketene (DPK) suggests an alternative pathway for the reductive coupling of C02-like compounds. 

The synthetic method leading to Nb-alkylidenes and Nb-alkylidynes was particularly successful, due to a quite remarkable difference in the reaction rate of 29 with ketones or aldehydes, vs the subsequent reaction of the alkylidene with ketones and aldehydes (see Scheme 37). The former reaction takes a few minutes at -40°C, while the latter one occurs in hours at room temperature.88 The reaction between 178 and benzaldehyde led to triphenylethylene and the niobyl derivative 184. Due to the difference in reaction rates between a and b in Scheme 37, it was found that the sequential addition of two different ketones or aldehydes to a THF solution of 29 produced a nonsymmetric olefin in a stepwise McMurry-type reaction.84 This is exemplified in the coupling shown in reaction c (Scheme 37). The proposed reaction pathway does not involve the intermediacy of a pinacolato ligand and therefore differs from the mechanism of the McMurry reaction and related reductive couplings at activated metal sites.89... 

Low-valent nickel complexes of bpy are also efficient electrocatalysts in the reductive coupling reaction of aromatic halides.207 Detailed investigations are in agreement with a reaction mechanism involving the oxidative addition (Equation (40)) of the organic halide to a zero valent complex.208-210 Starting from [Nin(bpy)2(X)2]0 with excess bpy, or from [Nin(bpy)3]2 +, results in the [Ni°(bpy)2]° complex (Equations (37) and (38)). However, the reactive complex is the... 

The electrochemistry of cobalt-salen complexes in the presence of alkyl halides has been studied thoroughly.252,263-266 The reaction mechanism is similar to that for the nickel complexes, with the intermediate formation of an alkylcobalt(III) complex. Co -salen reacts with 1,8-diiodo-octane to afford an alkyl-bridged bis[Co" (salen)] complex.267 Electrosynthetic applications of the cobalt-salen catalyst are homo- and heterocoupling reactions with mixtures of alkylchlorides and bromides,268 conversion of benzal chloride to stilbene with the intermediate formation of l,2-dichloro-l,2-diphenylethane,269 reductive coupling of bromoalkanes with an activated alkenes,270 or carboxylation of benzylic and allylic chlorides by C02.271,272 Efficient electroreduc-tive dimerization of benzyl bromide to bibenzyl is catalyzed by the dicobalt complex (15).273 The proposed mechanism involves an intermediate bis[alkylcobalt(III)] complex. 

Reductive Cross-Coupling of Nitrones Recently, reductive coupling of nitrones with various cyclic and acyclic ketones has been carried out electrochem-ically with a tin electrode in 2-propanol (527-529). The reaction mechanism is supposed to include the initial formation of a ketyl radical anion (294), resulting from a single electron transfer (SET) process, with its successive addition to the C=N nitrone bond (Scheme 2.112) (Table 2.9). 

Cyclization of 2-(l-alkynyl)XV-alkylidene anilines is catalyzed by palladium to give indoles (Equation (114)).471 Two mechanisms are proposed the regioselective insersion of an H-Pd-OAc species to the alkyne moiety (formation of a vinylpalladium species) followed by (i) carbopalladation of the imine moiety and /3-hydride elimination or (ii) oxidative addition to the imino C-H bond and reductive coupling. 

Strong support for the mechanism shown in Scheme 48 was presented. Dissociation of OR- to form a five-coordinate cation occurs prior to reductive coupling. C-C reductive elimination occurs in an intramolecular fashion from this cation. In contrast, C-0 reductive elimination occurs by nucleophilic attack of the OR- on the Pt(IV)-methyl group of the five-coordinate cation. 

Scheme 22.12 Possible mechanisms for the reductive coupling of 1,3-cyclohexadiene and 2-naphthyl glyoxal under an atmosphere of D2(g).

These observations form the basis for the working hypothesis for the mechanism of cluster assembly on the IscU scaffold (Fig. 5.6). The proposal that the reductive coupling of two [Fc282] " clusters to yield a 6484] " cluster involves disulfide formation between two of the released cysteine residues is based on model chemistry. Flohn and co-workers showed that... 

Carbocupration of alkynes by zirconacyclopentane derivatives can be performed according to the same procedure. Thus, the zirconocyclopentane 135, obtained by treatment of Bu2ZrCp2 with 1,6-heptadiene, reacts at room temperature with phe-nylacetylene to afford the adduct 136 through a carbocupration-reductive elimination mechanism. Cross-coupling followed by intramolecular carbocupration takes place in the case of the reaction with 1-bromohexyne, producing 137 (Scheme 2.66) [143]. 

Reductive coupling of 1,1-dimethylallene and 5-nitro-2-furancarboxaldehyde under a deuterium atmosphere provides the product of ferf-prenylation incorporating deuterium at the interior vinylic position (80% H). This result is consistent with a mechanism involving allene-aldehyde oxidative coupling. However, alternate pathways involving allene hydrometallation to furnish allyliridium species cannot be excluded on the basis of these data (Scheme 10). 

The [lrCl(cod)]2-catalyzed reductive coupling of acrylates and imines provides trans-P-lactams with high diastereoselectivity (Equation 10.39) [67]. With regards to the reaction mechanism, in situ generated Ir-hydride reacts with acrylate 148 to produce an Ir enolate, which then reacts with the 147 to afford the P-amido ester 149. 

---