Debottlenecking a Pulp Mill by Producing Biofuels from Black Liquor in Three Steps.

By extracting lignin, pulp production can be increased without heavy investments in a new recovery boiler, the typical bottleneck of a pulp mill. The extraction is performed by using 0.20 and 0.15 weight equivalents of CO2 and H2 SO4 respectively. Herein, we describe lignin esterification with fatty acids using benign reagents to generate a lignin ester mixable with gas oils. The esterification is accomplished by activating the fatty acid and lignin with acetic anhydride which can be regenerated from the acetic acid recycled in this reaction. The resulting mass balance ratio is fatty acid/lignin/acetic acid (2 : 1 : 0.1). This lignin ester can be hydroprocessed to generate hydrocarbons in gasoline, aviation, and diesel range. A 300-hour continuous production of fuel was accomplished. By recirculating reagents from both the esterification step and applying a water gas shift reaction on off-gases from the hydroprocessing, a favorable overall mass balance is realized.

Discovery of 3-Cyano- N-(3-(1-isobutyrylpiperidin-4-yl)-1-methyl-4-(trifluoromethyl)-1 H-pyrrolo[2,3- b]pyridin-5-yl)benzamide: A Potent, Selective, and Orally Bioavailable Retinoic Acid Receptor-Related Orphan Receptor C2 Inverse Agonist.

The nuclear hormone receptor retinoic acid receptor-related orphan C2 (RORC2, also known as RORγt) is a promising target for the treatment of autoimmune diseases. A small molecule, inverse agonist of the receptor is anticipated to reduce production of IL-17, a key proinflammatory cytokine. Through a high-throughput screening approach, we identified a molecule displaying promising binding affinity for RORC2, inhibition of IL-17 production in Th17 cells, and selectivity against the related RORA and RORB receptor isoforms. Lead optimization to improve the potency and metabolic stability of this hit focused on two key design strategies, namely, iterative optimization driven by increasing lipophilic efficiency and structure-guided conformational restriction to achieve optimal ground state energetics and maximize receptor residence time. This approach successfully identified 3-cyano- N-(3-(1-isobutyrylpiperidin-4-yl)-1-methyl-4-(trifluoromethyl)-1 H-pyrrolo[2,3- b]pyridin-5-yl)benzamide as a potent and selective RORC2 inverse agonist, demonstrating good metabolic stability, oral bioavailability, and the ability to reduce IL-17 levels and skin inflammation in a preclinical in vivo animal model upon oral administration.

Green Diesel from Kraft Lignin in Three Steps.

Precipitated kraft lignin from black liquor was converted into green diesel in three steps. A mild Ni-catalyzed transfer hydrogenation/hydrogenolysis using 2-propanol generated a lignin residue in which the ethers, carbonyls, and olefins were reduced. An organocatalyzed esterification of the lignin residue with an in situ prepared tall oil fatty acid anhydride gave an esterified lignin residue that was soluble in light gas oil. The esterified lignin residue was coprocessed with light gas oil in a continous hydrotreater to produce a green diesel. This approach will enable the development of new techniques to process commercial lignin in existing oil refinery infrastructures to standardized transportation fuels in the future.

Synthesis of 4-methyldienoates using a vinylogous Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons reagent. Application to the synthesis of trichostatic acid.

The utility of the unsaturated phosphonate 1 as a vinylogous Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons reagent was explored in reactions with aldehydes affording 4-methyldienoate esters. Factors that affect E/Z selectivity were studied. A simplified synthesis of trichostatic acid 3 was accomplished to demonstrate utility of this reagent.

Stereoselective palladium-catalyzed carbocyclization of allenic allylic carboxylates.

Palladium(0)-catalyzed reaction of allene-substituted allylic carboxylates 3-8 employing 2-5 mol % of Pd(dba)(2) in refluxing toluene leads to the carbocyclization and elimination of carboxylic acid to give bicyclo[4.3.0]nonadiene and bicyclo[5.3.0]decadiene derivatives (12-17). The carbon-carbon bond formation is stereospecific, occurring syn with respect to the leaving group. Addition of maleic anhydride as a ligand to the above-mentioned procedures changed the outcome of the reaction, and under these conditions 3-5 afforded cycloisomerized products 21-23. The experimental results are consistent with a mechanism involving oxidative addition of the allylic carboxylate to Pd(0) to give an electron-deficient (pi-allyl)palladium intermediate, followed by nucleophilic attack by the allene on the face of the pi-allyl opposite to that of the palladium atom. Furthermore, it was found that the Pd(dba)(2)-catalyzed cyclization of the trans-cycloheptene derivative (trans-8) can be directed to give either the trans-fused (trans-17) or the cis-fused (cis-17) ring system by altering the solvent. The former reaction proceeds via a nucleophilic trans-allene attack on the (pi-allyl)palladium intermediate, whereas the latter involves a syn-allene insertion into the allyl-Pd bond of the same intermediate. The products from the carbocylization undergo stereoselective Diels-Alder reactions to give stereodefined polycyclic systems in high yields.

Palladium-catalyzed carbocyclization of allene-diene derivatives. Exploring different nucleophiles.

The palladium-catalyzed carbocyclization of allene-diene derivatives leading to the stereospecific formation of various 4-substituted [4.3.0] and [5.3.0] bicyclic systems is presented. Different functionalities were introduced at the C-4 position of the bicyclic systems by using a range of external nucleophiles such as carboxylic acids, alcohols, phenols, and thiophenols. In the previous protocol acetic acid was used as solvent and also served as nucleophile. In this new methodology, reactions were run in nonnucleophlic solvents such as CH(2)Cl(2) or acetone in the presence of the appropriate nucleophile, making this new protocol a more versatile tool in organic synthesis. It is noteworthy that the Pd(II)-catalyzed cyclization of cycloheptadiene-derivative 1b gave exclusively the trans-annulated bicycle 4. Depending on the nature of the nucleophile, the regioselectivity of the reaction could be tuned to afford exclusively 4b or 4c' (Scheme 1). The mechanistic pathway is discussed.

Allenes as carbon nucleophiles in intramolecular attack on (pi-1,3-diene)palladium complexes: evidence for trans carbopalladation of the 1,3-diene.

Reaction of allene-substituted cyclohexa- and cyclohepta-1,3-dienes with [PdCl(2)(PhCN)(2)] gave eta(3)-(1,2,3)-cyclohexenyl- and eta(3)-(1,2,3)-cycloheptenylpalladium complexes, respectively, in which C-C bond formation between the allene and the 1,3-diene has occurred. Analysis of the (pi-allyl)palladium complexes by NMR spectroscopy, using reporter ligands, shows that the C-C bond formation has occurred by a trans carbopalladation involving nucleophilic attack by the middle carbon atom of the allene on a (pi-diene)palladium(II) complex. The stereochemistry of the (pi-allyl)palladium complexes was confirmed by benzoquinone-induced stereoselective transformations to allylic acetates.

Allenes as carbon nucleophiles in palladium-catalyzed reactions: observation of anti attack of allenes on (pi-allyl)palladium complexes.

In the palladium-catalyzed cyclization of allenic allylic esters using Pd(dba)2 as catalyst, it was shown that the allene acts as a carbon nucleophile. Intermediates were isolated and stereochemical studies established that the double bond of the allene has attacked the (pi-allyl)palladium intermediate on the face opposite to that of palladium.