Ruthenium catalysis alkylation

Reactions of arenes carrying a coordinating substituent with alkenes may give alkylated derivatives when catalysed by ruthenium biscarboxylate complexes. Experiments with deuterium-labelled compounds indicate that carbon-hydrogen metallation is reversible, so that reductive elimination from intermediates such as (90) is rate determining. Carboxylate-assisted ruthenium catalysis also allows the reaction of 2-arylpyridines with methylenecyclopropane to give derivatives, (91), in which the cyclopropane ring is conserved. ... 

Scheme 7.44 Domino oxidation-Michael-intramolecular alkylation reaction, domino oxidation-Michael-hemiacetalisation reaction, and domino oxidation-oxa-Michael-Michael reaction catalysed by chiral amine catalysis and ruthenium catalysis.

Montagut-Romans A, Boulven M, Lemaire M, Popowycz F. Efficient C-3 reductive alkylation of 4-hydroxycoumarin by dehydrogenative oxidation of benzybc alcohols through ruthenium catalysis. New J Chem. 2014 38 1794-1801. 

Complex formation with flic substrate is the key stage of many catalytic processes. The formation of the following types of organometallic complexes is most typical in catalysis alkyl 7i-complexes, carbene complexes, n-complexes of substrates with the saturated bond (olefin, acetylene and allyl, complexes with carbon oxides), hydrazine complexes, and complexes with molecular oxygen and nitrogen. The structure of a ruthenium complex with CO2 obtained on the basis of an ab initio study is presented in Fig. 17.4. 

Since Bruce s pioneering work in the area of ruthenium vinylidene chemistry (1), it has been well known that isomerization of a terminal alkyne to a vinylidene on a metal center is not only favorable but also effects a reversal in the reactivity of the carbon atoms. However, hydration catalysis was not possible, because alkyl migration from a proposed acyl intermediate led to an... 

In this paper we disclose the syngas homologation of carboxylic acids via ruthenium homogeneous catalysis. This novel homologation reaction involves treatment of lower MW carboxylic acids with synthesis gas (C0/H2) in the presence of soluble ruthenium species, e.g., Ru02, Ru3(C0)12, H4Ru4(C0)12, coupled with iodide-containing promoters such as HI or an alkyl iodide (1). 

Although mechanistically different, a successful kinetic resolution of cyclic allyl ethers has recently been achieved by zirconium catalysis [2201. Other metals such as cobalt [221], ruthenium [222], and iron [2231 have been shown to catalyze allylic alkylation reactions via metal-allyl complexes. However, their catalytic systems have not been thoroughly investigated, and the corresponding asymmetric catalytic processes have not been forthcoming. Nevertheless, increasing interest in the use of alternative metals for asymmetric alkylation will undoubtedly promote further research in this area. 

The substituent R may be alkyl, cydoalkyt. or benzyl. Catalysts are selected from transition metals which can form carbonyl complexes. Ruthenium and especially cobalt form active catalysts, although other metals like Rh. Pd. Ft. Os, Ir, Cr, Mn, Fe, and Nt have also been examined. If metals like ruthenium or iron catalysis are used, carbon dioxide is formed instead of water as the by-product. 

Ruthenium-catalyzed allylic alkylation falls between known catalysis with respect to regioselectivity and chirality of products. Like Pd, Mo, and W-but unlike Rh regioselectivity is not highly dependent on the nature of the starting carbonate. However, unlike Pd and Mo, but similar to Rh and W, substitution of the chiral substrate occurs with high retention of configuration, (equation 75). Hence the Ru system compliments other metal-catalyzed allylic systems well. ... 

The formation of allenylidene derivatives from ethynyl-hexanol and alkenyl-vinylidene mononuclear complexes (9), the formation of mononuclear ruthenium allenyl complexes from terminal alkynes (10), the intermediacy of ruthenium-allenylidene complexes in forming propargylic alcohols (II), and in the cyclization of propargyl alcohols (12), and the use of mononuclear ruthenium compounds in allylic alkylation catalysis (13) have also been reported. 

---