Carbene N-heterocyclic

The surprising stability of N-heterocyclic carbenes was of interest to organometallic chemists who started to explore the metal complexes of these new ligands. The first examples of this class had been synthesized as early as 1968 by Wanzlick [9] and Ofele [10], only 4 years after the first Fischer-type carbene complex was synthesized [2,3] and 6 years before the first report of a Schrock-type carbene complex [11]. Once the N-heterocyclic ligands are attached to a metal they show a completely different reaction pattern compared to the electrophilic Fischer- and nucleophilic Schrock-type carbene complexes. 

During the last decade N-heterocyclic carbene complexes of transition metals have been developed for catalytic applications for many different or-... 

Ruthenium Precatalysts with N-Heterocyclic Carbene Ligands.238... 

The search for even more active and recyclable ruthenium-based metathesis catalysts has recently led to the development of phosphine-free complexes by combining the concept of ligation with N-heterocyclic carbenes and benzyli-denes bearing a coordinating isopropoxy ligand. The latter was exemplified for Hoveyda s monophosphine complex 13 in Scheme 5 [12]. Pioneering studies in this field have been conducted by the groups of Hoveyda [49a] and Blechert [49b], who described the phosphine-free precatalyst 71a. Compound 71a is prepared either from 56d [49a] or from 13 [49b], as illustrated in Scheme 16. 

Independently, Caddick et al. reported microwave-assisted amination of aryl chlorides using a palladium-N-heterocyclic carbene complex as the catalyst (Scheme 99) [lOlj. Initial experiments in a domestic microwave oven (reflux conditions) revealed that the solvent is crucial for the reaction. The Pd source also proved very important, since Pd(OAc)2 at high power in DMF gave extensive catalyst decomposition and using it at medium and low power gave no reaction at all. Pd(dba)2/imidazohum salt (1 mol% catalyst loading) in DME with the addition of some DMF was found to be suitable. Oil bath experiments indicated that only thermal effects are governing the amination reactions. 

Synthesis of Chiral N-heterocyclic Carbenes and of Their Complexes... 

Nolan SP, Viciu MS (2005) The Use of N-Heterocyclic Carbenes as Ligands in Palladium Mediated Catalysis. 14 241-278... 

Zhang YR, He L, Wu X, Shao PL, Ye S (2008) Chiral N-heterocyclic carbene catalyzed Staudinger reaction of ketenes with imines highly enantioselective synthesis of W-Boc P-lactams. Org Lett 10 277-280... 

Glorius F (ed) (2007) N-heterocyclic carbenes in transition metal catalysis. Springer, Hamburg... 

C. S. J. Cazin (ed.), N-Heterocyclic Carbenes in Transition Metal Catalysis and Organocatalysis, Catalysis by Metal Complexes 32,... 

Fig. 1.1 Number of publications N-heterocyclic carbene as research topic)...

Nielsen DJ, Cavell KJ (2006) Pd-NHC complexes as catalysts in telomerization and aryl amination reactions. In Nolan SP (ed) N-Heterocyclic carbenes in synthesis. WUey-VCH, Weinheim, pp 73-102... 

---