Ytterbium-catalyzed reactions

A combination of cat. Ybt and A1 is effective for the photo-induced catalytic hydrogenative debromination of alkyl bromide (Scheme 28) [69]. The ytterbium catalyst forms a reversible redox cycle in the presence of Al. In both vanadium- and ytterbium-catalyzed reactions, the multi-component redox systems are achieved by an appropriate combination of a catalyst and a co-reductant as described in the pinacol coupling, which is mostly dependent on their redox potentials. 

Recently, intermolecular hydrophosphination of alkynes was also reported with ytterbium-imine complex catalyst precursors [20]. Aromatic alkynes react at room temperature to afford ( )-isomers, while aliphatic ones require heating at 80 °C and, quite surprisingly, (Z)-isomers (trans-addition products) are formed preferentially (Table 4). In this respect the ytterbium-catalyzed reactions are different from the radical process, in which the ( )-isomer formed initially isomerizes to the (Z)-isomer. 

The ytterbium-catalyzed reaction can be applied to other unsaturated compounds as summarized in Scheme 17. 

Zeijden [112] used chiral M-functionalized cyclopentadiene ligands to prepare a series of transition metal complexes. The zirconium derivative (82 in Scheme 46), as a moderate Lewis acid, catalyzed the Diels-Alder reaction between methacroleine and cyclopentadiene, with 72% de but no measurable enantiomeric excess. Nakagawa [113] reported l,T-(2,2 -bis-acylamino)binaphthalene (83 in Scheme 46) to be effective in the ytterbium-catalyzed asymmetric Diels-Alder reaction between cyclopentadiene and crotonyl-l,3-oxazolidin-2-one. The adduct was obtained with high yield and enantioselectivity (97% yield, endo/exo = 91/9, > 98% ee for the endo adduct). The addition of diisopropylethylamine was necessary to afford high enantioselectivities, since without this additive, the product was essentially... 

In the presence of a catalytic amount of chiral lanthanide triflate 63, the reaction of 3-acyl-l,3-oxazolidin-2-ones with cyclopentadiene produces Diels-Alder adducts in high yields and high ee. The chiral lanthanide triflate 63 can be prepared from ytterbium triflate, (R)-( I )-binaphthol, and a tertiary amine. Both enantiomers of the cycloaddition product can be prepared via this chiral lanthanide (III) complex-catalyzed reaction using the same chiral source [(R)-(+)-binaphthol] and an appropriately selected achiral ligand. This achiral ligand serves as an additive to stabilize the catalyst in the sense of preventing the catalyst from aging. Asymmetric catalytic aza Diels-Alder reactions can also be carried out successfully under these conditions (Scheme 5-21).19... 

Reactions of the same carbonyl ylide intermediate with aldehydes are even more fruitful. The Rh2(OAc)2 catalyzed reaction proceeds at room temperature in the presence of 2 mol% of the catalyst, but the diastereoselectivity is disappointingly low (endo/exo = 49 51, Scheme 11.56). However, when 10 mol% of the cocatalyst Yb(OTf)3 is added, the reaction becomes highly exo-selective (endo/ exo = 3 97) (198). Suga has extended this Lewis acid catalyzed carbonyl ylide cycloaddition reaction to catalyzed asymmetric versions. The chiral cocatalyst employed is ytterbium(III) tris(5)-1,1 -binaphthyl-2,2 -diyl phosphonate, Yb[(S) BNP]3 (10 mol%). In the reaction of methyl o-(diazoacetyl)benzoate with benzyloxyacetaldehyde in the presence of Rh2(OAc)2 (2 mol%) at room temperature with the chiral Yb catalyst, the diastereoselectivity is low (endo/exo = 57 43) and the enantiopurity of the endo-cycloadduct is 52% ee. 

Diazo transfer to 1 followed by irradiation in the presence of bis-(trimethylsilyl)amide led to ring contraction with concomitant carbonyl extrusion, to give 7. Dehydration to the nitrile followed selenation then set the stage for a highly diastereoselective ytterbium-catalyzed Diels-Alder reaction, to give, after reduction and protection, the pentacyclic intermediate 2. 

Furthermore, a vast number of organometallic catalyzed reactions can be performed in a biphasic manner thus proving that also uncommon reactions may be worth to be investigated in liquid/liquid systems. For instance, Braddock describes the atom economic nitration of aromatics in a two-phase process [192], Nitration of aromatics leads usually to excessive acid waste streams and the classical Lewis acid catalysts such as boron trifluoride are destroyed in the aqueous quench after the reaction thus making any recycle impossible. In the method of Braddock the ytterbium triflate catalyst is solved in the aqueous phase and can be recycled by a simple evaporative process. Monflier and Mortreux [193] investigated the nickel catalyzed isomerization of olefins, for instance allylbenzene, in a two phase system yielding good yields of cis- and trans-methylstyrene. 

Mlynarski et al. [16] developed ytterbium-catalyzed enantio- and diastereoselective aldol-Tishchenko reactions of symmetrical dialkyl ketones as enol components for the first time. As chiral ytterbium ligand, they employed the amino alcohol 32, which gave rise to aldol-Tishchenko products such as 33 with up to 86% ee (Scheme 8.10). As documented by control experiments and very similar to the above discussed processes, the rate- and stereo-determining step in this reaction was proven to be the Tishchenko reduction with a rapid pre-retro-aldol equilibrium of the initially formed aldol products. This process may be utilized for reactions of alkyl aryl ketones as well, broadening its scope significantly. 

In comparison to samarium and ytterbium salts, there were few examples for cerium, praseodymium, and other the rare earth metals catalyzed aldol reaction (214,215). In 2000s, Samarium salts, especially Sml2, have been used in versatile aldol reactions, for example, direct aldol of aldehydes and substituted oxi-ranyl ketones (216), nitro aldol reaction (217,218), intramolecular aldol reaction (219), and other aldol reaction of special carbonyl compounds (220-222). However, catalytic asymmetric samarium-catalytic aldol reaction was not reported so far. In the asymmetric version of the aldol reaction, ytterbium exhibited promising enantioinduction. In the first example of the asymmetric ytterbium-catalyzed aldol reaction, moderate levels of enantioselectivities were achieved (Scheme 56) (223). Subsequently, Mlynarski and co-workers improved enatioinduction ability of the ytterbium-catalyzed aldol reaction by using catalytic amount of Yb(OTf)3... 

A silyl enol ether attacks this activated aldehyde to produce the aldol adduct. This ytterbium-catalyzed aldol reaction would proceed via the acyclic transition state to give syn aldols [26]. When the amount of water is further increased, a competitive reaction, hydrolysis of the silyl enol ether, precedes the desired aldol reaction. 

It has been shown that ytterbium tris-(l )-(-)-l,l -binaphthyl-2,2 -diyl phospho-nate can catalyze the reaction of aromatic aldehydes with Danishefsky s diene to... 

In 1997 the application of two different chiral ytterbium catalysts, 55 and 56 for the 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reaction was reported almost simultaneously by two independent research groups [82, 83], In both works it was observed that the achiral Yb(OTf)3 and Sc(OTf)3 salts catalyze the 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition between nitrones 1 and alkenoyloxazolidinones 19 with endo selectivity. In the first study 20 mol% of the Yb(OTf)2-pyridine-bisoxazoline complex 55 was applied as the catalyst for reactions of a number of derivatives of 1 and 19. The reactions led to endo-selective 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions giving products with enantioselectivities of up to 73% ee (Scheme 6.38) [82]. In the other report Kobayashi et al. described a... 

The 2-pyrones can behave as dienes or dienophiles depending on the nature of their reaction partners. 3-Carbomethoxy-2-pyrone (84) underwent inverse Diels-Alder reaction with several vinylethers under lanthanide shift reagent-catalysis [84] (Equation 3.28). The use of strong traditional Lewis acids was precluded because of the sensitivity of the cycloadducts toward decarboxylation. It is noteworthy that whereas Yb(OTf)j does not catalyze the cycloaddition of 84 with enolethers, the addition of (R)-BINOL generates a new active ytterbium catalyst which promotes the reactions with a moderate to good level of enantio selection [85]. 

The [4+2] cycloaddition reaction of N-atylaldimines with vinyl ethers is effectively catalyzed by ytterbium(III) triflate to give quinoline derivatives (e.g., 50) in good yield <95S801>. 

In the presence of In powder 2-cycIohexen-l-one is converted by allyl iodide and Me3SiCI 14, in 63% yield, into the 1,4-addition product 2179 [84], which is also obtained in 73% yield by Sakurai 1,4-addition ofallyltrimethylsilane 82 to 2-cyclohexene-l-one in the presence of excess Me3SiCl 14 and catalytic amounts of InCl3 [85] (Scheme 13.25). Ytterbium] 111) triflate-catalyzed imino-ene reactions of N-tosylaldimines with a-methylstyrene are dramatically accelerated on addition of Me3SiCl 14 [85 a]. 

To avoid excessive acid waste, lanthanide(III) triflates are used as recyclable catalysts for economic aromatic nitration. Among a range of lanthanide(III) triflates examined, the ytterbium salt is the most effective. A catalytic quantity (1-10 mol%) of ytterbium(III) triflate catalyzes the nitration of simple aromatics with excellent conversions using an equivalent of 69% nitric acid in refluxing 1,2-dichloromethane for 12 h. The only by-product of the reaction is water, and the catalyst can be recovered by simple evaporation of the separated aqueous phase and reused repeatedly for further nitration.12... 

Otera has reported that fluorous distannoxanes such as 23, which dissociate to give Lewis acidic species, catalyze transesterifications in or-ganic/fluorous solvent mixtures [8,9]. Although 23 was insoluble in toluene at room temperature, it dissolved at reflux and efficiently promoted the transformation in reaction D of Scheme 4, as well as others. The catalyst precipitated upon cooling, but a fluorous solvent extraction was utilized for recovery (100%). Another thermomorphic fluorous Lewis acid catalyst was developed by Mikami [11]. He found that the ytterbium tris(sulfonamide) 24 could be used for Friedel-Crafts acylations imder homogeneous conditions in CICH2CH2CI at 80 °C, and precipitated upon cooHng to -20 °C (reaction E, Scheme 4). 

Scheme 18 Chiral ytterbium triflate-catalyzed enantioselective Biginelli reaction...

Kobayashi reported an asymmetric Diels-Alder reaction catalyzed by a chiral lanthanide(III) complex 24, prepared from ytterbium or scandium triflate [ Yb(OTf)3 or Sc(OTf)3], (Zf)-BINOL and tertiary amine (ex. 1,2,6-trimethylpiperidine) [30], A highly enantioselective and endose-lective Diels-Alder reaction of 3-(2-butenoyl)-l,3-oxazolidin-2-one (23) with cyclopentadiene (Scheme 9.13) takes place in the presence of 24. When chiral Sc catalyst 24a was used, asymmetric amplification was observed with regard to the enantiopurity of (/ )-BINOL and that of the endoadduct [31 ]. On the other hand, in the case of chiral Yb catalyst 24b, NLE was affected by additives, that is, when 3-acetyl-l,3-oxazolidin-2-one was added, almost no deviation was observed from linearity, whereas a negative NLE was observed with the addition of 3-pheny-lacetylacetone. 

The ytterbium triflate catalyzed Biginelli reaction of aldehydes, ethyl acetoacetate and urea to give in a one-pot synthesis dihydropyrimidones was performed again in higher yields without any solvent (Scheme 13) [38]. 

Scheme 13. Ytterbium triflate catalyzed Biginelli reaction [38].

---