Metal carbonyls Pauson—Khand reaction

Abstract The transition metal mediated conversion of alkynes, alkenes, and carbon monoxide in a formal [2 + 2+1] cycloaddition process, commonly known as the Pauson-Khand reaction (PKR), is an elegant method for the construction of cyclopentenone scaffolds. During the last decade, significant improvements have been achieved in this area. For instance, catalytic PKR variants are nowadays possible with different metal sources. In addition, new asymmetric approaches were established and the reaction has been applied as a key step in various total syntheses. Recent work has also focused on the development of CO-free conditions, incorporating transfer carbonylation reactions. This review attempts to cover the most important developments in this area. 

Recent developments have impressively enlarged the scope of Pauson-Khand reactions. Besides the elaboration of strategies for the enantioselective synthesis of cyclopentenones, it is often possible to perform PKR efficiently with a catalytic amount of a late transition metal complex. In general, different transition metal sources, e.g., Co, Rh, Ir, and Ti, can be applied in these reactions. Actual achievements demonstrate the possibility of replacing external carbon monoxide by transfer carbonylations. This procedure will surely encourage synthetic chemists to use the potential of the PKR more often in organic synthesis. However, apart from academic research, industrial applications of this methodology are still awaited. 

Although a whole series of carbonyl complexes of other transition metals (Fe, Mo, W, Ni) could only be used in stoichiometric Pauson-Khand reactions [11], two Japanese laboratories have since independently reported efficient ruthenium-catalyzed (intramolecular) reactions. The desired cy-clopentenones are formed in good to excellent yields in dimethylacetamide [12] or dioxane [13] in the presence of 2 mol% of [Ru3(CO),2] at 140-160 °C and 10-13 atm CO pressure. 

Prior to the development of enyne bicyclization reactions promoted by Zr and other Group IV metals, the Co-catalyzed enyne bicyclization-carbonylation reaction (the Pauson-Khand reaction ) was known. This reaction is discussed in Volume 5, Chapter 9.1. In the Pauson-Khand reaction, the overall transformation is the conversion of enynes into bicyclic enones, and the organometallic bicyclic intermediates are usually neither readily available nor isolated. The use of Co2(CO)s, an 18-electron species, necessitates relatively high reaction temperatures. These and other limitations suggested the desirability of developing alternative enyne bicyclization reactions. 

The Pauson-Khand reaction gives the same product as the group 4 metal-mediated reductive coupling and carbonylation, and both reactions proceed by essentially the same mechanism formation of an alkyne-metal tt complex, insertion of an alkene, insertion of CO, and reductive elimination. Some details differ, however. When an alkyne is added to Co2(CO)g, CO evolves, and an isolable, chromatographable alkyne-Co2(CO)6 complex is obtained. This butterfly complex contains four Co(II)-C bonds, and the Co-Co bond is retained. The formation of the alky n e-C o2 (C O) 6 complex involves the formation of an ordinary tt complex of the alkyne with one Co(0) center, with displacement of CO. The tt complex can be written in its Co(II) cobaltacyclopropene resonance structure. The tt bond of the cobaltacyclopropene is then used to form a tt complex to the other Co center with displacement of another equivalent of CO. This second tt complex can also be written in its cobaltacyclopropene resonance structure. The alkyne-Co2(CO)6 complex has two 18-electron Co(II) centers. 

The catalytic [2 + 2 + 1]-cycloaddition reaction of two carbon—carbon multiple bonds with carbon monoxide has become a general synthetic method for five-membered cyclic carbonyl compounds. In particular, the Pauson-Khand reaction has been widely investigated and established as a powerful tool to synthesize cyclopentenone derivatives.110 Various kinds of transition metals, such as cobalt, titanium, ruthenium, rhodium, and iridium, are used as a catalyst for the Pauson-Khand reaction. The intramolecular Pauson-Khand reaction of the allyl propargyl ether and amine 91 produces the bicyclic ketones 93, which bear a heterocyclic ring as shown in Scheme 31. The reaction proceeds through formation of the bicyclic metallacyclopentene intermediate 92, which subsequently undergoes insertion of CO to give 93. 

Besides [m + n] cycloadditions and [m 4- m + m +. ..] cyclo- and cocyclooligomerizations of alkenes, dienes or alkynes (see Sections 1.5.8.3.5, and 1.5.8.3.6.), transition metal complexes can also catalyze the cycloaddition of more than two different components. Most important is carbonylative ring synthesis with carbon monoxide as the C, unit. Several methods of this type use transition metals stoichiometrically, others catalytically. For some of the stoichiometric methods, developments towards catalytic versions are under way (e g., the Pauson-Khand reaction, see below). 

Although this reaction usually requires stoichiometric amounts of the metal carbonyl, Kraft has shown that substoichiometric amounts can be used.3 3 jjer work, 35-50% of Co2(CO)8 was used under a nitrogen atmosphere, in dimethoxyethane with 3 equivalents of cyclohexylamine. Kraft and Bonaga also developed dodecacarbonyltetracobalt as a viable catalyst.3 4 j e use of amines to promote the reaction was mentioned above. Molecular sieves have also been used to promote the Pauson-Khand reaction,3 5 d high intensity ultrasound is also effective.3 6 Polymer-supported promoters of this reaction are also known. " ... 

AstraZeneca published the use of an immobilized transition metal carbonyl complex as a catalyst in the Pauson-Khand reaction [67]. This reaction is known to produce useful products but it also suffers from a number of drawbacks dicobalt octacarbonyl and its analogs are volatile, toxic, and unstable due to loss of carbon monoxide and aerial oxidation. These drawbacks can be avoided by the use of an immobilized metal carbonyl complex (Scheme 13), which is safe and convenient to handle (see also [68]). It offers the additional advantages of being reusable after recovery from the reaction medium and the product becomes less contaminated with metal carbonyl remnants. The reaction was applicable to a wide range of substrates with the exception of tetra-substituted alkenes. A typical reaction of enine 32 to the bicyclic enone 33 is depicted in Scheme 13. 

Complexes of other transition metals have been reported to catalyze Pauson-Khand reactions. Buchwald reported intramolecular PKRs with 1.2 atm of CO at 90 °C in the presence of CpjTi(CO)2. " However, most other catalytic Pauson-Khand reactions have been conducted with late transition metal catalysts. Murai and Mitsudo simultaneously reported intramolecular PKRs catalyzed by ruthenium carbonyl clusters in dioxane or DMAc at 140-160 °C under 10-15 atm of CO. The first Rli-catalyzed PKR was reported by Narasaka. ° In this case, the reaction occurred with acceptable rates, even with CO pressures less than 1 atm. Shibata reported PKRs in refluxing xylenes under 1 atm of CO in the presence of catalytic amounts of PPli and [Ir(COD)Cl]2. Adrio and Carretero showed that the solvated molybdenum carbonyl complex Mo(DMF)3(CO)3 catalyzed intramolecular PKRs with monosubstituted olefins, as well as with disubstituted electron-poor olefins, and Hoye showed that W(CO)5(THF) catalyzes intramolecular PKRs. Iron and palladium complexes have also been reported to catalyze the PKR. 

A problem is that the Pauson-Khand reaction uses two equivalents of cobalt. More efficient versions, many of them catalytic, using other metals have been developed. These include carbonyl complexes of titanium, molybdenum, tungsten (Scheme 7.15), rhodium and ruthenium (Scheme 7.16). Rhodium, iridium and iron (Scheme 7.17) have also been used with two alkynes to give cyclopentadienones, often as complexes 7.59. A version of the Pauson-Khand reaction employing a nickel catalyst and an isonitrile in place of CO has been developed. The product is an imine, which can be hydrolysed to a cyclopentenone. 

Among the carbonylative cycloaddition reactions, the Pauson-Khand (P-K) reaction, in which an alkyne, an alkene, and carbon monoxide are condensed in a formal [2+2+1] cycloaddition to form cyclopentenones, has attracted considerable attention [3]. Significant progress in this reaction has been made in this decade. In the past, a stoichiometric amount of Co2(CO)8 was used as the source of CO. Various additive promoters, such as amines, amine N-oxides, phosphanes, ethers, and sulfides, have been developed thus far for a stoichiometric P-K reaction to proceed under milder reaction conditions. Other transition-metal carbonyl complexes, such as Fe(CO)4(acetone), W(CO)5(tetrahydrofuran), W(CO)5F, Cp2Mo2(CO)4, where Cp is cyclopentadienyl, and Mo(CO)6, are also used as the source of CO in place of Co2(CO)8. There has been significant interest in developing catalytic variants of the P-K reaction. Rautenstrauch et al. [4] reported the first catalytic P-K reaction in which alkenes are limited to reactive alkenes, such as ethylene and norbornene. Since 1994 when Jeong et al. [5] reported the first catalytic intramolecular P-K reaction, most attention has been focused on the modification of the cobalt catalytic system [3]. Recently, other transition-metal complexes, such as Ti [6], Rh [7], and Ir complexes [8], have been found to be active for intramolecular P-K reactions. 

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