Controlled decomposition of SF6 by electrochemical reduction.

The electroreduction of SF6 is shown at ambient temperature in acetonitrile using an array of platinum microelectrodes to improve the electrical detection. Its half reduction potential occurs at -2.17 V vs Fc+/Fc. The exact number of electrons for the full consumption of sulfur hexafluoride was determined and this gas further quantitatively transformed into environmentally benign fluoride anion and sulfur by electrochemical reduction.

Synthesis of Polysubstituted Iodoarenes Enabled by Iterative Iodine-Directed para and ortho C-H Functionalization.

Among halogenated aromatics, iodoarenes are unique in their ability to produce the bench-stable halogen(III) form. Earlier, such iodine(III) centers were shown to enable C-H functionalization ortho to iodine via halogen-centered rearrangement. The broader implications of this phenomenon are explored by testing the extent of an unusual iodane-directed para C-H benzylation, as well as by developing an efficient C-H coupling with sulfonyl-substituted allylic silanes. Through the combination of the one-shot nature of the coupling event and the iodine retention, multisubstituted arenes can be prepared by sequentially engaging up to three aromatic C-H sites. This type of iodine-based iterative synthesis will serve as a tool for the formation of value-added aromatic cores.

The Coming of Age in Iodane-Guided ortho-C-H Propargylation: From Insight to Synthetic Potential.

As early as 1991 Ochiai et al. reported that an acid-activated form of phenyliodine diacetate, PhI(OAc)2 , undergoes a reaction with propargyl-silanes, germanes and stannanes to give the ortho-propargyl iodobenzene. This formal C-H alkylation was proposed to take place through an unusual (even to date) iodonio-based [3,3] rearrangement of an intermediate allenylsilane. Although this mechanistic principle has been invoked in related iodane-directed C-H coupling reaction, some underlying principles have remained unaddressed, and the reaction rarely employed. Herein, DFT evidence for a mechanism best described as iodine-guided electrophilic aromatic substitution is presented. Using a newly optimized reaction protocol that significantly reduces the undesired reduction process, the potency of the method is showcased through the synthesis of >40 structurally diverse ortho-iodo propargyl (or allenyl) arenes.

Dichlorotrifluoromethoxyacetic Acid: Preparation and Reactivity.

We describe the first gram scale preparation of the reagent dichlorotrifluoromethoxyacetic acid. This stable compound is obtained in five steps starting from the cheap diethylene glycol. The reactivity of the sodium salt of this fluorinated acid was also tested and allowed the preparation of new amides.

Synthesis of enantioenriched aza-proline derivatives through gold(I)-catalyzed cyclization of chiral α-hydrazino esters.

A selective gold(I)-catalyzed synthesis of chiral aza-proline derivatives has been developed by ring closure of enantioenriched α-hydrazino esters bearing an alkyne group. These are easily prepared through a synthetic strategy involving two key steps: organocatalyzed electrophilic amination of pent-4-ynal with dialkyl azodicarboxylate promoted by l-proline and functionalization of the triple bond by Sonogashira cross-coupling. This strategy allowed the preparation of a range of enantioenriched α-hydrazino esters that underwent ring closure by using Ph(3)PAuCl/AgBF(4) as a catalytic system. Under these conditions, 5-exo-dig cyclization was favored over 6-endo-dig and aza-proline derivatives were obtained in good yields without epimerization at the stereogenic center. Influence of the catalytic system, hydrazine protecting group and alkyne substitution on the cyclization step has also been investigated.

Fluoroalkyl Amino Reagents for the Introduction of the Fluoro(trifluoromethoxy)methyl Group onto Arenes and Heterocycles.

Fluoroalkyl amino reagents 1a and 2a have been developed from commercially available trifluoromethyl trifluorovinyl ether via a hydroamination reaction with diethylamine or dimethylamine. These reagents can be activated by treatment with a Lewis acid and subsequently used as a mono- or dielectrophile for the introduction of the fluoro(trifluoromethoxy)methyl group, either in Vilsmeier-type acylations of aromatic substrates or in the synthesis of fluorinated pyrazoles from CH-acidic substrates and of bis-fluorinated pyrazoles, all being important building blocks for medicinal and agricultural chemistry.