Showing papers on "Substituent published in 2003"

Cyclopentadienyl-carboranyl hybrid compounds: a new class of versatile ligands for organometallic chemistry.

Abstract: A new class of organic-inorganic hybrid compounds bearing a cyclic pi-ligand, an icosahedral carborane moiety, and a bridging group has been developed. These are very versatile ligands, featuring both an organic and an inorganic moiety as well as a bridging ligand. They can be readily converted into mono-, di-, tri- and pentaanionic species under suitable reaction conditions, leading to the generation of a new class of organometallic compounds in which the carboranyl unit can be cast in the role of a bulky substituent, a sigma-, eta(5), eta(6), or eta(7) pi-ligand. This Account provides an overview of our recent work in this area.

Enantioselective oxidative biaryl coupling reactions catalyzed by 1,5-diazadecalin metal complexes: efficient formation of chiral functionalized BINOL derivatives.

Abstract: Chiral 1,5-diaza-cis-decalins have been examined as ligands in the enantioselective oxidative biaryl coupling of substituted 2-naphthol derivatives Under the optimal conditions employing 25-10 mol % of a 1,5-diaza-cis-decalin copper(II) catalyst with oxygen as the oxidant, enantioselective couplings (44-96% ee) could be achieved for a range of 3-substituted 2-naphthols including the ester, ketone, phosphonyl, and sulfonyl derivatives The relationship between the substitution of the naphthalene starting materials and reactivity/selectivity is determined by several factors which act in concert: (1) the effect of substituents on the oxidation potential of the substrate, (2) the ability of the substrate to participate in a chelated copper complex which depends on (a) the inherent coordinating ability of the 3-substituent and (b) substituent steric interactions that affect chelation between the 2-hydroxyl and 3-substituent, (3) the effect of substituents on dissociation of the product from the copper catalyst

Stereochemistry of Nucleophilic Substitution Reactions Depending upon Substituent: Evidence for Electrostatic Stabilization of Pseudoaxial Conformers of Oxocarbenium Ions by Heteroatom Substituents

Abstract: Lewis acid-mediated nucleophilic substitution reactions of substituted tetrahydropyran acetates reveal that the conformational preferences of six-membered-ring cations depend significantly upon the electronic nature of the substituent. Nucleophilic substitutions of C-3 and C-4 alkyl-substituted tetrahydropyran acetates proceeded via pseudoequatorially substituted oxocarbenium ions, as would be expected by consideration of steric effects. Substitutions of C-3 and C-4 alkoxy-substituted tetrahydropyran acetates, however, proceeded via pseudoaxially oriented oxocarbenium ions. The unusual selectivities controlled by the alkoxy groups were demonstrated for a range of other heteroatom substituents, including nitrogen, fluorine, chlorine, and bromine. It is believed that the pseudoaxial conformation is preferred in the ground state of the cation because of an electrostatic attraction between the cationic carbon center of the oxocarbenium ion and the heteroatom substituent. This analysis is supported by the observation that selectivity diminishes down the halogen series, which is inconsistent with electron donation as might be expected during anchimeric assistance. The C-2 heteroatom-substituted systems gave moderately high 1,2-cis selectivity, while small alkyl substituents showed no selectivity. Only in the case of the tert-butyl group at C-2 was high 1,2-trans selectivity observed. These studies reinforce the idea that ground-state conformational effects need to be considered along with steric approach considerations.

Free radical macrophotoinitiators: an overview on recent advances

Abstract: This paper provides an overview of the recent advances on polymeric photoinitiators for UV curing. During the last decade, significant developments have been achieved in the synthesis of macrophotoinitiators, due to the advantages derived of their macromolecular nature, in comparison with their corresponding low molecular weight analogues. In particular, a variety of macromolecules containing the two main types of free radical photoinitiators: hydrogen-abstracting (thioxanthone, benzil, anthraquinone, camphorquinone) and photofragmenting chromophores (benzoin ether, acylphosphine oxides) are described. For hydrogen-abstracting photoinitiator, the photoinitiation activity have been examined in terms of volume and nature of substituent in the polymeric coil, and their influence to prevent the recombination of radicals favouring their reaction with the monomer. Also, copolymers bearing chromophore and amine groups with potential synergistic effects of activity are reported. It has been found that the approach of the tertiary amine to the chromophore to produce the corresponding exciplexes is dependent on both the monomeric or polymeric nature of chromophore and the tertiary amine. Type II polymeric photoinitiators, such as benzoin ether derivatives having the benzoin methyl ether moieties connected to the main chain through the benzyl aromatic are reported. And a fragmentation mechanism involving the formation of an stable quinoid structure and aliphatic acyl radical is proposed for the above copolymers, which would justified their lower initiating efficiency than the corresponding low molecular weight model. In addition, polymers bearing phosphine oxide moieties are described. The efficiency in the polymerisation of all photoinitiators was found to be similar and irrespective of the presence of flexible spacer in their structure. However, it was found that the flexible oligomethylene spacer enhanced the compatibility of the new polymeric photoinitiators in acrylic adhesive formulations. Finally, polysilanes as photoinitiators are reported. Under UV irradiation, polysilanes undergo main-chain scission leading to free silyl radicals capable of reacting with olefinic monomers. The silyl radicals generated by photolysis can be oxidised by appropriate onium salts to yield cationic initiating species (photoinitiated radical promoted cationic polymerisation). The photoinitiation efficiency of polysilanes having different aliphatic and aromatic side groups has been investigated and compared with commercial low molecular weight photoinitiators as benzoin.

Substituent effects on O--H bond dissociation enthalpies and ionization potentials of catechols: a DFT study and its implications in the rational design of phenolic antioxidants and elucidation of structure-activity relationships for flavonoid antioxidants.

Abstract: Density functional theory (DFT) on B3LYP/6-31G(d,p) level was employed to investigate the substituent effects on O--H bond dissociation enthalpies (BDEs) and ionization potentials (IPs) of catechols. It was revealed that the ortho hydroxyl of catechol was effective for the reduction of the O--H BDE; however, the group had little influence on the IP. The para substituent effects upon O--H BDEs and IPs for catechols were roughly the same as those for monophenols, and this gave the catechol moiety more potential than monophenol to be used as a lead compound in rational design of phenolic antioxidants. In addition, the 1,4-pyrone effects on O--H BDEs of catecholic rings A or B of flavonoids were also investigated. Although 1,4-pyrone extended the conjugation system of flavonoids, it was not beneficial to reduce the O--H BDE as a result of its electron-withdrawing property. Thus, 1,4-pyrone was unlikely to be favorable to enhance the H-abstraction activity of flavonoids.

Effects of ligand planarity on the interaction of polypyridyl Ru(II) complexes with DNA

Abstract: Two new polypyridyl ligands containing substituent Br at different positions in the phenyl ring, OBIP {OBIP = 2-(2-bromophenyl)imidazo[4,5-f]-1,10-phenanthroline}, PBIP {PBIP = 2-(4-bromophenyl)imidazo[4,5-f]-1,10-phenanthroline} and their Ru(II) complexes, [Ru(dmp)2(OBIP)]2+1 and [Ru(dmp)2(PBIP)]2+2 (dmp = 2,9-dimethyl-1,10-phenanthroline), have been synthesized and characterized. The binding of the two complexes to calf thymus DNA (CT DNA) has been investigated by spectrophotometric methods, viscosity measurements, as well as equilibrium dialysis and circular dichroism spectroscopy. Theoretical calculations for the two complexes were also carried out applying the density functional theory (DFT) method. The structure of complex 1 has been determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction techniques. The imidazo[4,5-f]-1,10-phenanthroline moiety is not coplanar with the 2-bromophenyl ring, having a dihedral angle of 48.6° in the OBIP ligand. The twisted conformation has been further confirmed by theoretical calculations, in which this dihedral angle is 48.2°. The theoretical calculations also suggest that the PBIP ligand in complex 2 is essentially planar (dihedral angle is 0.4°). The experimental results show that while complex 1 binds to CT DNA via a semi-intercalative mode, complex 2 strongly binds to CT DNA through intercalation. Complex 2 is thus a much better candidate as an enantioselective binder to CT DNA than complex 1. Some experimental regularities or trends have been reasonably explained by the theoretical results. These suggest that the planarity of the intercalated ligand has significant effects on the spectral properties and the DNA-binding behavior of the complexes, and that the DFT method can be used effectively to explain and predict some regularities or trends in the interaction of polypyridyl Ru(II) complexes with DNA.

Catalytic asymmetric synthesis of quaternary carbons bearing two aryl substituents. Enantioselective synthesis of 3-alkyl-3-aryl oxindoles by catalytic asymmetric intramolecular heck reactions.

Abstract: A practical sequence involving three consecutive palladium(0)-catalyzed reactions has been developed for synthesizing 3-alkyl-3-aryloxindoles in high enantiopurity. The Heck cyclization precursors 10 and 11a-k are generated in one step by chemoselective Stille cross-coupling of 2'-triflato-(Z)-2-stannyl-2-butenanilide 9 with aryl or heteroaryl iodides. The pivotal catalytic asymmetric Heck cyclization step of this sequence takes place in high yield and with high enantioselectivity (71-98% ee) with the Pd-BINAP catalyst derived from Pd(OAc)(2) to construct oxindoles containing a diaryl-substituted all-carbon quaternary carbon center. A wide variety of aryl and heteroaryl substituents, including ones of considerable steric bulk, can be introduced at C3 of oxindoles in this way (Table 4). The only limitations encountered to date are aryl substituents containing ortho nitro or basic amine functionalities and the bulky N-alkyl-7-oxindolyl group. Asymmetric Heck cyclization of butenalide 22 having an o-(N-acetyl-N-benzylamino)phenyl substituent at C2 provided a approximately 1:1 mixture of amide atropisomers 23 and 24 in high yield and high enantioselectivity. These atropisomers are formed directly upon Heck cyclization of 22 at 80 degrees C, as they interconvert thermally to only a small extent at this temperature.

Oligomerisation of Ethylene to Linear α‐Olefins by new Cs‐ and C1‐Symmetric [2,6‐Bis(imino)pyridyl]iron and ‐cobalt Dichloride Complexes

Abstract: A new family of Cs- and C1-symmetric 2,6-bis(imino)pyridyl ligands has been synthesised. These ligands, which differ from their known counterparts in the contemporaneous presence of alkyl and aryl substituent at the ketimine nitrogen atoms, form stable, five-coordinate complexes with FeCl2 and CoCl2. All ligands and catalysts have been fully characterised both in the solid state and in solution. A single-crystal X-ray analysis of [CoCl2{2-[CMe=N−(2,6-dimethylphenyl)]-6-(CMe=N−C6H11)C5H3N}]·H2O shows the metal centre to adopt a highly distorted square-pyramidal geometry. In combination with methylaluminoxane (MAO), both iron and cobalt compounds act as effective and selective (> 99%) catalysts for the oligomerisation of ethylene to a Schulz−Flory distribution of α-olefins, with the α factor ranging from 0.61 to 0.91. The iron catalysts exhibit TOFs as high as 7·105 mol C2H4 (mol of cat × h)−1 and are much more active than their cobalt analogues. Experiments at different ethylene pressures with the iron catalysts showed that both the propagation rate and the chain transfer rate are first order in ethylene pressure. (© Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2003)

Selective, catalytic carbon-carbon bond activation and functionalization promoted by late transition metal catalysts.

Abstract: The selective catalytic activation and functionalization of carbon−carbon bonds in a series of substituted cyclopropane substrates has been developed using commercially available transition metal catalysts. Catalytic hydrogenation and olefination procedures, tolerant of a range of functional groups, have been discovered. Introduction of a chelate-assisting substituent such as [PPh2] is effective in altering the kinetic selectivity and lowering the activation barrier for the catalytic processes.

Aromatic hydroxylation by cytochrome P450: model calculations of mechanism and substituent effects.

Abstract: The mechanism and selectivity of aromatic hydroxylation by cytochrome P450 enzymes is explored using new B3LYP density functional theory computations. The calculations, using a realistic porphyrin model system, show that rate-determining addition of compound I to an aromatic carbon atom proceeds via a transition state with partial radical and cationic character. Reactivity is shown to depend strongly on ring substituents, with both electron-withdrawing and -donating groups strongly decreasing the addition barrier in the para position, and it is shown that the calculated barrier heights can be reproduced by a new dual-parameter equation based on radical and cationic Hammett sigma parameters.

Low Molecular-Mass Gelators with Diyne Functional Groups and Their Unpolymerized and Polymerized Gel Assemblies

Abstract: A series of low molecular-mass organogelators (LMOGs) with conjugated diyne units, R−C⋮CC⋮C−R‘, has been synthesized from 10,12-pentacosadiynoic acid. R is a long alkyl chain and R‘ is a short or long alkyl chain containing an amide or ester group. The gelation efficiencies of these LMOGs and the parent acid (as assessed by the variety of liquids gelled, the amount of gelator needed for gelation, and the temporal and thermal stabilities of the gels) differ widely according to the nature of the substituents. An LMOG with an amide substituent is much more efficient than the corresponding molecule with an ester group, and LMOGs with longer R‘ chains are more efficient than those with shorter ones. When irradiated, some gel networks polymerize. In most cases, the polymerized aggregates phase-separate microscopically, but maintain the gel structure macroscopically. These gels are irreversibly photo- and thermo-chromic, and the thermal stabilities of some of the colored polymerized organogel networks are simila...

Novel 2-pyridylethylbenzamide derivative

Abstract: Compound of general formula (I) in which p is an integer equal to 1, 2, 3 or 4; q is an integer equal to 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5; each substituent X is chosen, independently of the others, as being halogen, alkyl or haloalkyl, at least one of the substituents being a haloalkyl; each substituent Y is chosen, independently of the others, as being halogen, alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl, haloalkyl, alkoxy, amino, phenoxy, alkylthio, dialkylamino, acyl, cyano, ester, hydroxy, aminoalkyl, benzyl, haloalkoxy, halosulphonyl, halothioalkyl, alkoxyalkenyl, alkylsulphonamide, nitro, alkylsulphonyl, phenylsulphonyl or benzylsulphonyl; as to the N-oxides of 2-pyridine thereof; with the exception of N-{2-[3-chloro-5-(trifluoromethyl)-2-pyridinyl]-ethyl}-2,6-dichlorobenzamide. Method for preparing the compound of general formula (I). Fungicidal composition comprising the compound of general formula (I). Method for treating phytopathogenic diseases.

A Highly Enantioselective Phosphabicyclooctane Catalyst for the Kinetic Resolution of Benzylic Alcohols

Abstract: A new class of chiral phosphines belonging to the P-aryl-2-phosphabicyclo[3.3.0]octane family (PBO) has been prepared by enantioselective synthesis starting from lactate esters and 2,2-dimethylcyclopentanone enolate 5. A selective enolate alkylation method has been developed for preparation of 9 and 10 using a chelating ester substituent in the triflate alkylating agent 11. Subsequent conversion to the PBO catalysts 2 and 39 relies on a diastereoselective cyclization from the cyclic sulfate 17 and LiPHAr to afford the more hindered endo-aryl phosphines. These phosphines function as efficient catalysts for the kinetic resolutions of aryl alkyl carbinols by benzoylation (16, 21, 22) or iso-butyroylation in the case of the less hindered aryl alkyl carbinol substrates. With o-substituted aryl alkyl carbinols, the enantioselectivities exceed 100, and s = 380 ± 10 has been demonstrated in the case of methyl mesityl carbinol. The PBO-catalyzed acylations probably involve a P-acylphosphonium carboxylate intermedi...

Substituent and solvent effects on the hyperporphyrin spectra of diprotonated tetraphenylporphyrins

Abstract: UV−visible spectra have been studied for a series of p-substituted tetraphenylporphyrins (TPPs) titrated with strong acid in various solvents. Substituent effects on the Soret and Q(I) absorption peaks and the fluorescence emission peaks have been treated by Hammett correlations. In general, there are only small effects with electron-withdrawing substituents, but electron-donating substituents lead to lower energy transitions, with especially strong effects observed in the case of the diprotonated porphyrins with good electron-donating substituents (hyperporphyrin effects). The hyperporphyrin effects are attributed to the crossing of a π molecular orbital on the substituted phenyl group above the usual porphyrin π highest occupied molecular orbital. For the neutral TPPs, this crossing is estimated to occur with a substituent as electron-donating as p-methoxy, and for the diprotonated TPPs, the crossing occurs at approximately unsubstituted TPP. Distinctive solvent effects on the spectra and the Hammett co...

Hydrogen-bonding effects on the properties of phenoxyl radicals. An EPR, kinetic, and computational study.

Abstract: The effect of 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoropropan-2-ol (HFP) on the properties of phenoxyl radicals has been investigated. HFP produces large variations of the phenoxyl hyperfine splitting constants indicative of a large redistribution of electron spin density, which can be accounted for by the increased importance of the mesomeric structures with electric charge separation. The conformational rigidity of phenoxyl radicals with electron-releasing substituents is also greatly enhanced in the presence of HFP, as demonstrated by the 2 kcal/mol increase in the activation energy for the internal rotation of the p-OMe group in the p-methoxyphenoxyl radical. By using the EPR equilibration technique, we have found that in phenols the O-H bond dissociation enthalpy (BDE) is lowered in the presence of HFP because it preferentially stabilizes the phenoxyl radical. In phenols containing groups such as OR that are acceptors of H-bonds, the interaction between HFP and the substituent is stronger in the phenol than in the corresponding phenoxyl radical because the radical oxygen behaves as an electron-withdrawing group, which decreases the complexating ability of the substituent. In phenols containing OH or NH(2) groups, EPR experiments performed in H-bond accepting solvents showed that the interaction between the solvent and the substituent is much stronger in the phenoxyl radical than in the parent phenol because of the electron-withdrawing effect of the radical oxygen, which makes more acidic, and therefore more available to give H-bonds, the OH or NH(2) groups. These experimental results have been confirmed by DFT calculations. The effect of HFP solvent on the reactivity of phenols toward alkyl radicals has also been investigated. The results indicated that the decrease of BDE observed in the presence of HFP is not accompanied by a larger reactivity. The origin of this unexpected behavior has been shown by DFT computations. Finally, a remarkable increase in the persistency of the alpha-tocopheroxyl radical has been observed in the presence of HFP.

Heterogeneous Enantioselective Hydrogenation of Activated Ketones Catalyzed by Modified Pt‐Catalysts: A Systematic Structure‐Selectivity Study

Abstract: A systematic structure-selectivity study was carried out for the enantioselective hydrogenation of activated ketones with chirally modified Pt/Al2O3 catalysts. For this, 18 modifiers containing an extended aromatic system able to form a strong adsorption complex with the Pt surface, and a suitable chiral group with an amino function capable to interact with the keto group of the substrate (HCd, Qd, HCn, Qn, and semi-synthetic derivatives, as well as synthetic analogues) were prepared and tested on 8 different activated ketones in AcOH and toluene under standard conditions. It was found that relatively small structural changes of the substrate and/or modifier structures strongly affected the enantioselectivity, and that no “best” modifier exists for all substrates. The highest ees for all substrates were obtained with quinuclidine-derived modifiers in combination with naphthalene or quinoline rings, either in AcOH (substrates 1–5 and 8, all carrying an sp3 carbon next to the keto group) or toluene (6 and 7, with an sp2 carbon next to the ketone). The presence and nature of the substituent R' at the quinuclidine significantly affected the ee (positive and negative effects). Certain combinations of an aromatic system and an amino function were preferred: For the quinuclidine moiety, quinoline and to a somewhat lesser extent naphthalene were a better match, while for the pyrrolidinylmethyl group anthracene was better suited. Methylation of the OH group often had a positive effect for hydrogenations in AcOH but not in toluene. With the exception of 8, higher ees were obtained for the Cd/Qn series [leading to (R)-products] than for the Cn/Qd series [leading to (S)-products]. In several cases, opposite structure-selectivity trends were detected when comparing reactions in toluene and AcOH, indicating a significant influence of the solvent.

Influence of fluorine substituent on the mesomorphic properties of five-ring ester banana-shaped molecules

Abstract: The synthesis and characterization of more than a hundred achiral compounds composed of banana-shaped molecules and belonging to eleven different homologous series are reported. All these symmetrical five-ring compounds are esters and are derived from resorcinol. The compounds have been systematically substituted by fluorine on the phenyl rings of the arms of these banana-shaped molecules. The mesophases exhibited by these compounds have been characterized using a combination of polarized light optical microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry and X-ray diffraction studies. Electro-optical investigations have been carried out on several compounds and both ferroelectric and antiferroelectric properties are observed. The influence of the position of the fluorine substituent on the nature of the mesophase obtained has been examined.

Photocatalytic degradability of substituted phenols over UV irradiated TiO2

Abstract: Synthetic wastewaters consist of substituted phenols: two hydroxyphenol (hydroquinone (hydro) and resorcinol), 4-nitrophenol (4-NP), 2,4-dinitrophenol (2,4-DNP) and 2,4,6-trinitrophenol (2,4,6-TNP) were photocatalytically degraded in aqueous TiO2 suspension. The influence of the nature of the substituent on the photodegradation has been investigated by comparing the initial degradation rates (v0 relative to phenol) to the different substituted phenols. This reactivity follows Hammett law with regard to the effect of nature group on phenolic fonctionality. The plot of v0=f(σ) shows a poor correlation when considering all the substituted phenols, when the nitrophenols (NO2 substituents) are evaluated separately and the hydroxyphenol (OH substituent) is not taken into account, good correlations are observed in both groups of data. A considerably influence of pH upon the kinetics of chemical oxygen demand (COD) disappearance was observed. In general, acidic pH is preferred to COD removal for all phenolic compounds. Photocatalysis transforms the nitro group in nitrophenols into NO3− and NH4+ through the formation of NO2− intermediate. The amount of nitrate depends on the number of nitro group in nitrophenol. The selectivity in nitrate ions is equal to 80, 56 and 66%, respectively, for 4-NP, 2,4-DNP and 2,4,6-TNP. It was also found that all the photo-treated solutions which we evaluated the ratios 5-day biological oxygen demand (BOD5)/COD show values higher than those recorded in initial solutions which is an indication of the positive effect of the applied photo-treatment.

The Effect of Ring Nitrogen Atoms on the Homolytic Reactivity of Phenolic Compounds: Understanding the Radical‐Scavenging Ability of 5‐Pyrimidinols

Abstract: Six substituted 5-pyrimidinols were synthesized, and the thermochemistry and kinetics of their reactions with free radicals were studied and compared to those of equivalently substituted phenols. To assess their potential as hydrogen-atom donors to free radicals, we measured their O-H bond dissociation enthalpies (BDEs) using the radical equilibration electron paramagnetic resonance technique. This revealed that the O-H BDEs in 5-pyrimidinols are, on average, about 2.5 kcal mol(-1) higher than those in equivalently substituted phenols. The results are in good agreement with theoretical predictions, and confirm that substituent effects on the O-H BDE of 5-pyrimidinol are essentially the same as those on the Obond;H BDE in phenol. The kinetics of the reactions of these compounds with peroxyl radicals has been studied by their inhibition of the AIBN-initiated autoxidation of styrene, and with alkyl and alkoxyl radicals by competition kinetics. Despite their larger O-H BDEs, 5-pyrimidinols appear to transfer their phenolic hydrogen-atom to peroxyl radicals as quickly as equivalently substituted phenols, while their reactivity toward alkyl radicals far exceeds that of the corresponding phenols. We suggest that this rate enhancement, which is large in the case of alkyl radical reactions, small in the case of peroxyl radical reactions, and nonexistent in the case of alkoxyl radical reactions, is due to polar effects in the transition states of these atom-transfer reactions. This hypothesis is supported by additional experimental and theoretical results. Despite this higher reactivity of 5-pyrimidinols towards radicals compared to phenols, electrochemical measurements indicate that they are more stable to one-electron oxidation than equivalently substituted phenols. For example, the 5-pyrimidinol analogues of 2,4,6-trimethylphenol and butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) were found to have oxidation potentials approximately 400 mV higher than their phenolic counterparts, but reacted roughly one order of magnitude faster with alkyl radicals and at about the same rate with peroxyl radicals. The 5-pyrimidinol structure should, therefore, serve as a useful template for the rational design of novel air-stable radical scavengers and chain-breaking antioxidants that are more effective than phenols.

Selective oxygenation of ring-substituted toluenes with electron-donating and -withdrawing substituents by molecular oxygen via photoinduced electron transfer.

Abstract: A ring-substituted toluene with an electron-withdrawing substituent, p-tolunitrile, is oxygenated by molecular oxygen to yield the corresponding aldehyde with tetrafluoro-p-dicyanobenzene as a photocatalyst under photoirradiation with an Hg lamp (λ > 300 nm). The oxygenation of a ring-substituted toluene with an electron-donating substituent, p-xylene, by molecular oxygen is also achieved with 10-methyl-9-phenylacridinium ion as a photocatalyst under visible light irradiation, yielding p-tolualdehyde exclusively as the final oxygenated product. Both the oxygenation reactions are initiated by photoinduced electron transfer from the ring-substituted toluene to the singlet excited state of the photocatalyst. The reason for the high selectivity in the photocatalytic oxygenation of various toluene derivatives by molecular oxygen is discussed on the basis of the photoinduced electron transfer mechanism that does not involve the autoxidation process (radical chain reactions). The reactive intermediates in the ph...

Ruthenium-Catalyzed Aromatization of Aromatic Enynes via the 1,2-Migration of Halo and Aryl Groups: A New Process Involving Electrocyclization and Skeletal Rearrangement

Abstract: The halo and aryl substituents of the 1,2-disubstituted styryl group of aromatic enynes undergo a 1,2-shift in the aromatization reaction catalyzed by TpRuPPh3(CH3CN)2PF6 (10 mol %) in toluene (110 °C, 6−8 h). The aryl group shifts to the neighboring olefin carbon, and the iodo (or bromo) substituent migrates to the terminal alkyne carbon. The mechanisms of these two migrations have been elucidated by isotope labeling experiments. It indicates that the 1,2-aryl shift arises from 5-endo-dig electrocyclization of a ruthenium−vinylidene species, whereas the 1,2-iodo shift follows a 6-endo-dig pathway.