P-heterocyclic carbenes

Gradient-corrected (BP86) density functional calculations have been carried out on various P-heterocyclic carbene metal complexes, including where the carbene was derived from a 1,3-azaphosphole <2005JOM(690)6068> and quantum-mechanical calculations at the DFT level were used to analyze metal-ligand interactions in mixed iron(ll) metallocenes where, in one instance, one of the ligands was a 1,3-diphospholide anion <20040M5308>. 

Interest has continued in the synthesis of phosphine-functional carbene (or carbene-precursor) ligands, e.g., (128), (129), (130), and (131) and P-heterocyclic carbenes have been the subject of a computational study... 

The first complex with a P-heterocyclic carbene ligand, analogue of an imidazol-2-ylidene, was described by Le Floch and co-workers in 2004. The free P-heterocyclic carbene (PHC) ligand, however, could not be isolated. Avoiding the pyramidalization of the phosphorus atoms by bulky P,P -sub-stituents, Bertrand isolated the first stable P-heteroeyelie earbene 127 in 2005 (Seheme 1.18). Sinee the phosphorus analogues of azolium salts were unknown, a new protoeol for the preparation of cationie PHC precursors had to be developed. This involved the dehalogenation of a phosphaalkene with... 

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... 

Ray, L., Shaikh, M.M. and Ghosh, P. (2008) Shorter Argentophilic Interaction than Aurophilic Interaction in a Pair of Dimeric (NHC)MC1 2 (M=Ag, Au) Complexes Supported over a N/O-Functionalized N-Heterocyclic Carbene (NHC) Ligand. Inorganic Chemistry, 47, 230-240. 

Pyykkd, P. and Runeberg, N. (2006) Comparative Theoretical Study of N-Heterocyclic Carbenes and Other Ligands Bound to Au. Chemistry - An Asian Journal, 1, 623-628. 

A vast number of derivatives of these general types have been prepared by similar routes for catalytic applications, and at this point we can do no more than provide a series of recent references some have P-donor ligands [24], some have N-heterocyclic carbenes [25], and others have mixed donors [26]. 

Aqueous two-phase hydrogenations are dominated by platinum group metal catalysts containing water-soluble tertiary phosphine ligands. The extremely stable and versatile N-heterocyclic carbene complexes attracted only limited interest, despite the fact that such complexes were described in the literature [62-65]. Recently, it was reported that the water-soluble [RuXY(l-butyl-3-methylimi-dazol-2-ylidene) ( 76-p-cymene)]n+ (X=Ch, H20 Y = C1-, H20, pta) complexes preferentially hydrogenated cinnamaldehyde and benzylideneacetone at the C = C double bond (Scheme 38.5) with TOF values of 30 to 60 h 1 in water substrate biphasic mixtures (80 °C, lObar H2) [66]. 

The only carbene-like reaction reported so far is the low-temperature addition of tert-butyl isocyanide to carbenes 2d and 2u.78 From the P-hydrogenophosphonio carbene 2d, the heterocycle 89 was isolated in high yield. It is believed that the initial coupling product 87d rapidly inserts a further equivalent of isocyanide into the P-H bond, leading to the intermediate 88, which then undergoes rapid elimination of diisopropylamine. When the same reaction was performed with the P-chloro(phosphonio)car-bene 2u, a 1/1 mixture of keteneimine 90 and phosphinonitrile was obtained. This result can be explained by the cleavage of the carbene-isocyanide coupling product 87u by residual HCN, inherently present in the f-BuNC. 

Rogers MM, Stahl SS (2006) N-Heterocyclic Carbenes as Ligands for High-Oxidation-State Metal Complexes and Oxidation Catalysis. 21 21-46 Roland S, Mangeney P (2005) Chiral Diaminocarbene Complexes, Synthesis and Application in Asymmetric Catalysis. 15 191-229 Roll R, see Behr A (2008) 23 19-52... 

Metal complexes with M-heterocyclic carbene ligands were known long before the first stable NHCs were isolated. Wanzlick [5] and Ofele [6] demonstrated as early as 1968 that NHC complexes can be obtained by in situ deprotonation of azolium salts in the presence of a suitable metal complex without prior isolation of the free NHC ligand (Fig. 1). In these cases a ligand of the metal complex precursor (acetate or hydride) acted as a base for the deprotonation of the imidazolium cation. This method has been successfully transferred to other metal precursors containing basic ligands like [Pd(OAc)2] [97] and [(cod)lr(p-OR)2lr(cod)] [98, 99]. Alternatively, an external base such as NaOAc, KOf-Bu or MHMDS (M = Li, Na, K) can be added for the deprotonation of the azolium salt [100]. In general, the in situ deprotonation of azolium salts appears as the most attractive method for the preparation of NHC complexes as it does not require the isolation of the reactive free carbene or its enetetramine dimer. 

N-Heterocyclic carbenes are an example of a family of nucleophilic catalysts [84-87]. For instance, the polymerization of p-butyrolactone was catalyzed by l,3,4-triphenyl-4,5-dihydro-l//,l,2-triazol-5-ylidene in the presence of methanol as an initiator [86]. This reaction was carried out in toluene at 80 °C. Nevertheless, an undesired elimination (Fig. 4) reaction was observed and control of the polymerization was lost. This issue was overcome by using ferf-butanol as a co-solvent, which reacts reversibly with the free carbene to form a new adduct. Owing to the decrease in the concentration of the free carbene, the elimination is disfavored and the polymerization is then under control provided that a degree of polymerization below 200 is targeted. As a rule, the reactivity of N-heterocyclic carbenes depends on their substituents. Hindered N-heterocyclic carbenes turned out to be not nucleophilic enough for the ROP of sCL. Recently, it was shown that unencumbered N-heterocyclic carbenes were more efficient catalysts [87]. 

Coulembier O, Lohmeijer BGG, Dove AP, Pratt RC, Mespouille L, Culkin DA, Benight SJ, Dubois P, Waymouth RM, Hedrick J (2006) Alcohol adducts of N-heterocyclic carbenes latent catalysts for the thermally -controlled living polymerization of cyclic esters. Macromolecules 2006 5617-5628... 

A wide range of a,p-unsaturated aldehydes, including 3-alkyl derivatives, undergo /V-heterocyclic carbene (NHC)-catalyzed annulations with A -sulfonyl ketimines under mild conditions to provide bicyclo[3.2.0]lactams 194 with outstanding dia-stereo- and enantioselectivity (Scheme 70) [101]. This concise route to p-lactams... 

Scheme 61, yielded thiazole 200 as the major product, along with minor amounts of carbinol 201 [152]. On the other hand, treatment of the imine formed from 199 and p-methoxyphenylamine with catalytic tetrabutylammonium cyanide, produced suc-cinimide derivative 202. In both cases, the process is initiated by nucleophilic attack to the carbaldehyde C=0 (or azomethine s C=N) group, which is followed up by an anionic rearrangement. A variation of the above process using as catalysts /V-heterocyclic carbenes (NHC) derived from base treatment of azolium, imidazo-lium, or triazolium salts, has also been developed to access gem-disubstituted succinimides [153, 154]. Unfortunately, an attempt of kinetic resolution of racemic 4-formyl (3-lactams by using chiral NHC resulted in moderate selectivities only [154]. 

Nolan, S. P., N-Heterocyclic Carbenes in Synthesis. Wiley-VCH, Weinheim, (2006). 

A copper-free catalytic enantioselective addition to p-ch 1 oro-cr,/3-unsaturated esters has been developed in the presence of A-heterocyclic carbenes.92 The activation of Grignard reagents has been achieved using a Lewis base. ... 

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