Although known for over 90 years, only in the past two decades has the chemistry of diboron(4) compounds been extensively explored. Many interesting structural features and reaction patterns have emerged, and more importantly, these compounds now feature prominently in both metal-catalyzed and metal-free methodologies for the formation of B–C bonds and other processes.

Diboron(4) Compounds: From Structural Curiosity to Synthetic Workhorse

Covalent organic frameworks offer a molecular platform for integrating organic units into periodically ordered yet extended two- and three-dimensional polymers to create topologically well-defined polygonal lattices and built-in discrete micropores and/or mesopores. This polymer architecture is unique as it enables predesigning both primary- and high-order structures, greatly enhancing our capabilities of designing organic materials to produce predictable structures and to achieve unique properties and functions. Progress over the past 15 years in the design, synthesis and functional exploration of COFs has successively established the basis of the COF field and COFs have shown the great potential of chemistry in developing a class of amazing organic materials. In this review, we focus on analysing the historic developments of COFs to uncover a full materials and application picture by providing comprehensive yet clear guidance for molecular design, synthetic control and functional exploration. We scrutinise the structural components of COFs including building blocks, reactive sites and functional groups with the aim of finding the origins of structural designability and diversity, as well as multiple functionalities. We disclose strategies for designing and synthesising frameworks to construct various tailor-made interfaces, and for exploring skeletons and pores to design properties and functions. With well-defined skeletons, pores and interfaces that offer a chemical basis to trigger and control interactions with photons, excitons, phonons, polarons, electrons, holes, spins, ions and molecules, we illustrate the current status of our understandings of structure-property correlations, and unveil the principles for establishing a regime to design unique functions that originate from and are inherent to structures. We predict the key central issues in design and synthesis, the challenges in functional design and the future directions from the perspectives of chemistry, physics and materials science.

Covalent organic frameworks: an ideal platform for designing ordered materials and advanced applications

Silver, known and utilized since ancient times, is a coinage metal, which has been widely used for various organic transformations in the past few decades. Currently, the silver-catalyzed reaction is one of the frontier areas in organic chemistry, and the progress of research in this field is very rapid. Compared with other transition metals, silver has long been believed to have low catalytic efficiency, and most commonly, it is used as either a cocatalyst or a Lewis acid. Interestingly, the discovery of Ag-catalysis has been significantly improved in recent years. Especially, Ag(I) has been demonstrated as an important and versatile catalyst for a variety of organic transformations. However, so far, there has been no systematic review on Ag-catalyzed C–H/C–C bond functionalization. In this review, we will focus on the development of Ag-catalyzed C–H/C–C bond functionalization and the corresponding mechanism.

Ag-catalyzed C–H/C–C bond functionalization

A new method of cobalt-catalyzed synthesis of pyrrolidinones from aliphatic amides and terminal alkynes was discovered through a C-H bond functionalization process on unactivated sp(3) carbons with the silver cocatalyst using a bidentate auxiliary. For the first time, a broad range of easily accessible alkynes are exploited as the reaction partner in C(sp(3))-H bond activation to give the important 5-ethylidene-pyrrolidin-2-ones in a site-selective fashion. The reaction tolerates a wide variety of functional groups including -F, -Cl, -Br, -CF3, ether, cyclopropane, and thiophene. Both pyridine ligand and aromatic solvent play the important role for the promotion of reactivity. This cobalt-catalyzed cyclization reaction can be successfully extended to a variety of aromatic amides to afford a variety of isoindolinones. Attractive features of this catalytic system include its low cost, easy operation, and convenient access to a wide range of pyrrolidinones and isoindolinones.

Cobalt-Catalyzed Cyclization of Aliphatic Amides and Terminal Alkynes with Silver-Cocatalyst

Silver-catalyzed reactions are some of the important methodologies in organic chemistry. Since 2007, a new application of silver catalysts has been emerging. For the sequential carboxylation and cyclization of alkyne derivatives, such as propargyl alcohols and amines, using carbon dioxide, silver catalysts show significant reactivity under mild conditions unlike other transition metals. These developments have received much attention for the effective utilization of carbon dioxide in organic chemistry to synthesize heterocyclic compounds. Related silver-catalyzed C–C bond forming reactions with carbon dioxide have also provided the synthetic methods of the corresponding carboxylic acid derivatives. In this review, the recent studies of the silver-catalyzed carboxylation reactions using carbon dioxide are described.

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Silver-catalyzed carboxylation.

Silver is a less expensive noble metal. Superior alkynophilicity due to π-coordination with the carbon-carbon triple bond makes silver salts ideal catalysts for alkyne-based organic reactions. This review highlights the progress in alkyne chemistry via silver catalysis primarily over the past five years (ca. 2010-2014). The discussion is developed in terms of the bond type formed with the acetylenic carbon (i.e., C-C, C-N, C-O, C-Halo, C-P and C-B). Compared with other coinage metals such as Au and Cu, silver catalysis is frequently observed to be unique. This critical review clearly indicates that silver catalysis provides a significant impetus to the rapid evolution of alkyne-based organic reactions, such as alkynylation, hydrofunctionalization, cycloaddition, cycloisomerization, and cascade reactions.

Xihe Bi

Papers

Silver-catalysed reactions of alkynes: recent advances