Jamie Docherty

Efficient C−C bond-forming reactions between N,O-acetals and vinylboronic acids were achieved via a calcium(II)-catalyzed formation of a N-acyliminium intermediate or a related ion. This strategy can give a rapid access to a wide variety of alkenyl-functionalized nitrogen-containing compounds in good to excellent yields under simple reaction conditions.

Alkenyl-to-allyl 1,4-rhodium(I) migration enables the generation of nucleophilic allylrhodium(I) species by remote C−H activation. This new mode of reactivity was employed in the diastereoselective reaction of arylboron reagents with substrates containing a 1,3-enyne tethered to a ketone, to give products containing three contiguous stereocenters. The products can be obtained in high enantioselectivities using a chiral sulfur-alkene ligand.

On the move: The title migration enables the generation of nucleophilic allylrhodium(I) species by remote C−H activation. This new mode of reactivity was employed in the diastereoselective reaction of arylboron reagents with substrates containing a 1,3-enyne tethered to a ketone, to give products containing three contiguous stereocenters. The products can be obtained in high enantioselectivities using a chiral sulfur-alkene ligand.

The chlorination of Si−H bonds often requires stoichiometric amounts of metal salts in conjunction with hazardous reagents, such as tin chlorides, Cl₂, and CCl₄. The catalytic chlorination of silanes often involves the use of expensive transition-metal catalysts. By a new simple, selective, and highly efficient catalytic metal-free method for the chlorination of Si−H bonds, mono-, di-, and trihydrosilanes were selectively chlorinated in the presence of a catalytic amount of B(C₆F₅)₃ or Et₂O⋅B(C₆F₅)₃ and HCl with the release of H₂ as a by-product. The hydrides in di- and trihydrosilanes could be selectively chlorinated by HCl in a stepwise manner when Et₂O⋅B(C₆F₅)₃ was used as the catalyst. A mechanism is proposed for these catalytic chlorination reactions on the basis of competition experiments and density functional theory (DFT) calculations.

Cl-early a winning combination: Hydrosilanes underwent selective chlorination upon treatment with HCl in the presence of a catalytic amount of B(C₆F₅)₃ with the liberation of H₂ (see scheme). For the chlorination of di- and trihydrosilanes, the adduct Et₂O⋅B(C₆F₅)₃ was found to be the more selective catalyst.