Ytterbium(II) Complex-Catalyzed Selective Single and Double Hydrophosphination of 1,3-Enynes.

1,3-Enynes with conjugated alkene and alkyne moieties are attractive building blocks in synthetic chemistry. However, neither 4,1-hydrophosphination nor dihydrophosphination of 1,3-enynes has been reported. In this paper, the divalent ytterbium and calcium amide complexes supported by silaimine-functionalized cyclopentadienyl ligands (C5Me4-Si(L)=NR) were developed, which successfully catalyzed the efficient single and double hydrophosphination of 1,3-enynes with diarylphosphines. The hydrophosphination reactions selectively produced homoallenyl phosphines and (E)-propenylene diphosphines, respectively. This work demonstrated the potential of hemilabile silaimine-Cp ligands in the supporting the efficient and selective rare- and alkaline-earth catalysts.

Exploring Electrophilic Hydrophosphination via Metal Phosphenium Intermediates.

Two Mo(0) phosphenium complexes containing ancillary secondary phosphine ligands have been investigated with respect to their ability to participate in electrophilic addition at unsaturated substrates and subsequent P-H hydride transfer to "quench" the resulting carbocations. These studies provide stoichiometric "proof of concept" for a proposed new metal-catalyzed electrophilic hydrophosphination mechanism. The more strongly Lewis acidic phosphenium complex, [Mo(CO)4(PR2H)(PR2)]+ (R=Ph, Tolp), cleanly hydrophosphinates 1,1-diphenylethylene, benzophenone, and ethylene, while other substrates react rapidly to give products resulting from competing electrophilic processes. A less Lewis acidic complex, [Mo(CO)3(PR2H)2(PR2)]+, generally reacts more slowly but participates in clean hydrophosphination of a wider range of unsaturated substrates, including styrene, indene, 1-hexene, and cyclohexanone, in addition to 1,1-diphenylethylene, benzophenone, and ethylene. Mechanistic studies are described, including stoichiometric control reactions and computational and kinetic analyses, which probe whether the observed P-H addition actually does occur by the proposed electrophilic mechanism, and whether hydridic P-H transfer in this system is intra- or intermolecular. Preliminary reactivity studies indicate challenges that must be addressed to exploit these promising results in catalysis.

A Simple Manganese(I) Catalyst for the Efficient and Selective Hydrophosphination of Olefins with PH3, Primary, and Secondary Phosphanes.

A tridentate ligand L with a P,NH,N donor motif was synthesized in few steps from commercially available precursors. Upon reaction with [MnBr(CO)5], an octahedral 18-electron complex [Mn(CO)3(L)]Br (1) is obtained in which L adopts a facial arrangement. After deprotonation of the NH group in the cationic complex unit, a neutral Mn(I) amido complex [Mn(CO)2(L-H)] (2) is formed under loss of CO. Rearrangement of L-H leads to a trigonal bipyramidal structure in which the P and N donor centers are in trans position. Further deprotonation of 2 results in a dep-blue anionic complex fragment [Mn(CO)2(L-2H)]- (3). DFT calculations and a QTAIM analysis show that the amido complex 2 contains a Mn-N bond with partial double bond character and 3 an aromatic MnN2C2 ring. The anion [Mn(CO)2(L-2H)]- reacts with Ph2PH to give a phosphido complex, which serves as phosphide transfer reagent to activated olefins. But the catalytic activity is low. However, the neutral amido complex 2 is an excellent catalyst and with loadings as low as 0.04 mol %, turn over frequencies of >40'000 h-1 can be achieved. Furthermore, secondary and primary alkyl phosphines as well as PH3 can be added in a catalytic hydrophosphination reaction to a wide range of activated olefins such as α,ß-unsaturated aldehydes, ketones, esters, and nitriles. But also, vinyl pyridine and some styrene derivatives are converted into the corresponding phosphanes.

Synthesis and Characterization of Transition Metal Complexes Supported by Phosphorus Ligands Obtained Using Hydrophosphination of Cyclic Internal Alkenes.

The design and study of rich, bulky phosphorus ligands is a key area of research for homogeneous catalysis. Here, we describe an original strategy using a hydrophosphination reaction to produce phosphines of interest for coordination chemistry and homogenous catalysis. In particular, the phosphine obtained by reacting diphenylphosphine with acenaphthylene (ligand 2) gives a ligand that adopts an unusual spatial geometry. The coordination chemistry of the ligand has been investigated with Au(I), Ag(I), Cu(I), and Pd(II), for which a complete characterization could be made, particularly in X-ray diffraction studies. The reactivity of some of these complexes has been demonstrated, particularly in Pd-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions and Au-catalyzed hydroaminations and in the hydration of alkynes.

Enantioselective Hydrophosphination of Terminal Alkenyl Aza-Heteroarenes.

This paper presents a Mn(I)-catalysed methodology for the enantioselective hydrophosphination of terminal alkenyl aza-heteroarenes. The catalyst operates through H-P bond activation, enabling successful hydrophosphination of a diverse range of alkenyl-heteroarenes with high enantioselectivity. The presented protocol addresses the inherently low reactivity and the commonly encountered suboptimal enantioselectivities of these challenging substrates. As an important application we show that this method facilitates the synthesis of a non-symmetric tridentate P,N,P-containing ligand like structure in just two synthetic steps using a single catalytic system.

Diastereo- and Enantioselective Hydrophosphination of Cyclopropenes under Lanthanocene Catalysis.

The asymmetric hydrophosphination of cyclopropenes with phosphines is of much interest and importance, but has remained hardly explored to date probably because of the lack of suitable catalysts. We report here the diastereo- and enantioselective hydrophosphination of 3,3-disubstituted cyclopropenes with phosphines by a chiral lanthanocene catalyst bearing the C2 -symmetric 5,6-dioxy-4,7-trans-dialkyl-substituted tetrahydroindenyl ligands. This protocol offers a selective and efficient route for the synthesis of a new family of chiral phosphinocyclopropane derivatives, featuring 100 % atom efficiency, good diastereo- and enantioselectivity, broad substrate scope, and no need for a directing group.

Copper-Phosphido Catalysis: Enantioselective Addition of Phosphines to Cyclopropenes.

We describe a copper catalyst that promotes the addition of phosphines to cyclopropenes at ambient temperature. A range of cyclopropylphosphines bearing different steric and electronic properties can now be accessed in high yields and enantioselectivities. Enrichment of phosphorus stereocenters is also demonstrated via a Dynamic Kinetic Asymmetric Transformation (DyKAT) process. A combined experimental and theoretical mechanistic study supports an elementary step featuring insertion of a CuI -phosphido into a carbon-carbon double bond. Density functional theory calculations reveal migratory insertion as the rate- and stereo-determining step, followed by a syn-protodemetalation.

Copper(I)-Catalyzed Asymmetric Hydrophosphination of 3,3-Disubstituted Cyclopropenes.

Herein, a copper(I)-catalyzed asymmetric hydrophosphination of 3,3-disubstituted cyclopropenes is reported. It provides a series of phosphine derivatives in high to excellent diastereo- and enantioselectivities. The methodology enjoys broad substrate scope on both 3,3-disubstituted cyclopropenes and diarylphosphines. The high stereoselectivity is attributed to both the high stability of the Cu(I)-(R,R)-QUINOXP* complex in the presence of stoichiometric HPPh2 and the produced phosphines, and the high-performance asymmetric induction of the Cu(I)-(R,R)-QUINOXP* complex. Finally, the method is used for the synthesis of new chiral phosphine-olefin compounds built on a cyclopropane skeleton, one of which serves as a wonderful ligand in Rh-catalyzed asymmetric conjugate addition of phenylboronic acid to various α,ß-unsaturated compounds.

Reported Catalytic Hydrofunctionalizations that Proceed in the Absence of Catalysts: The Importance of Control Experiments.

The enlarged landscape of catalysis lies in the heart of chemistry. As the journey has set a milestone in organic synthesis, its darker side has not entered into the limelight. Studies disclose that the reported reactions by using catalysts were also attainable in the absence of catalysts in many cases. This article presents a literature collection that includes the significance of control experiments in hydrofunctionalization reactions. Systematic analysis reveals that the catalysts are ambiguous and might be unessential in chemical reactions enlisted here.

Synthesis and Characterization of Phosphinecarboxamide and Phosphinecarbothioamide, and Their Complexation with Palladium(II) Complex.

Reactions of isocyanates/isothiocyanates with primary and secondary phosphines without solvent at room temperature afforded phosphinecarboxamide/phosphinecarbothioamide, respectively, in excellent yields. Furthermore, palladium complex Pd(COD)Cl2 was allowed to react with Ph2PC(O)NHPh (1a) to afford [Pd{Ph2PC(O)NHPh-κP}2Cl2] (3). On the other hand, the reaction of Pd(COD)Cl2 with 1 eq. of Ph2PC(S)NHPh (2a) afforded [PdCl2{Ph2PC(S)NHPh-κP,S}] (4). In the case of a 1:2 molar ratio, [PdCl{Ph2PC(S)NHPh-κP,S}{Ph2PC(S)NHPh-κP}]Cl (5) was formed. The newly obtained compounds were fully characterized using multielement NMR measurements and elemental analyses. In addition, the molecular structures of Ph2PC(O)NH(CH2)2Cl (1j), Ph2PC(S)NHPh(4-Cl) (2c), and 3-5 were determined using single-crystal X-ray diffraction.

Carbene-Catalyzed Enantioselective Hydrophosphination of α-Bromoenals to Prepare Phosphine-Containing Chiral Molecules.

Disclosed herein is the first carbene-organocatalyzed asymmetric addition of phosphine nucleophiles to the in situ generated α,ß-unsaturated acyl azolium intermediates. Our reaction enantioselectively constructs carbon-phosphine bonds and prepares chiral phosphines with high optical purities. The phosphine products are suitable for transforming to chiral ligands or catalysts with applications in asymmetric catalysis. The diarylalkyl or trialkyl phosphine products from our catalytic reactions, air-sensitive and reactive in nature, can be trapped (and stored) in their sulfur-oxidized form for operational simplicities.

Rapid Synthesis of Chiral 1,2-Bisphosphine Derivatives through Copper(I)-Catalyzed Asymmetric Conjugate Hydrophosphination.

1,2-Bisphosphines have been identified as one class of important and powerful chiral ligands in asymmetric catalysis with transition metals. Herein, a copper(I)-catalyzed asymmetric hydrophosphination of α,ß-unsaturated phosphine sulfides was developed with the assistance of "soft-soft" interaction between copper(I)-catalyst and the phosphine sulfide moiety, which afforded 1,2-bisphosphine derivatives with diversified electronic nature and steric hindrance in high to excellent yields with high to excellent enantioselectivity. Moreover, the challenging catalytic asymmetric hydrophosphination/protonation reaction was achieved with excellent enantioselectivity. Strikingly, the dynamic kinetic resolution of racemic diarylphosphines was also successfully carried out with high to excellent diastereo- and enantioselectivities. Interestingly, the nucleophilic copper(I)-diphenylphosphide species was characterized by 31 P NMR spectrum and mass spectrum. At last, three products were transformed to chiral 1,2-bisphosphines, which were employed as ligands in Rh-catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation of α-amino-α,ß-unsaturated ester. The α-amino acid derivative was produced in high enantioselectivity, which demonstrated the utility of the present methodology.

Lithium-Aluminate-Catalyzed Hydrophosphination Applications.

Synthesized, isolated, and characterized by X-ray crystallography and NMR spectroscopic studies, lithium phosphidoaluminate iBu3 AlPPh2 Li(THF)3 has been tested as a catalyst for hydrophosphination of alkynes, alkenes, and carbodiimides. Based on the collective evidence of stoichiometric reactions, NMR monitoring studies, kinetic analysis, and DFT calculations, a mechanism involving deprotonation, alkyne insertion, and protonolysis is proposed for the [iBu3 AlHLi]2 aluminate catalyzed hydrophosphination of alkynes with diphenylphosphine. This study enhances further the development of transition-metal-free, atom-economical homogeneous catalysis using common sustainable main-group metals.

Markovnikov versus anti-Markovnikov Hydrophosphination: Divergent Reactivity Using an Iron(II) ß-Diketiminate Pre-Catalyst.

The ability to tune between different regioselectivities using a common pre-catalyst is an unusual yet highly desirable process. Here, we report the use of an iron(II) pre-catalyst that can be used to synthesize vinyl phosphines in a Markovnikov-selective manner in benzene, whereas a simple change to dichloromethane as the reaction solvent leads to the Z-selective anti-Markovnikov product. Preliminary mechanistic studies are reported that suggest Markovnikov selectivity is a radical-mediated process, whereas the anti-Markovnikov selectivity is not radical in nature but is due to a change in oxidation state.

Iron(II)-Catalyzed Hydrophosphination of Isocyanates.

The first transition metal catalyzed hydrophosphination of isocyanates is presented. The use of low-coordinate iron(II) precatalysts leads to an unprecedented catalytic double insertion of isocyanates into the P-H bond of diphenylphosphine to yield phosphinodicarboxamides [Ph2 PC(=O)N(R)C(=O)N(H)R], a new family of derivatized organophosphorus compounds. This remarkable result can be attributed to the low-coordinate nature of the iron(II) centers whose inherent electron deficiency enables a Lewis-acid mechanism in which a combination of the steric pocket of the metal center and substrate size determines the reaction products and regioselectivity.

N-Heterocyclic Carbene-Ytterbium Amide as a Recyclable Homogeneous Precatalyst for Hydrophosphination of Alkenes and Alkynes.

The N-heterocyclic carbene-ytterbium(II) amides (NHC)2Yb[N(SiMe3)2]2 (1: NHC: 1,3,4,5-tetramethylimidazo-2-ylidene (IMe4); 2: NHC: 1,3-diisopropyl-4,5-dimethylimidazol-2-ylidene (IiPr)) and the NHC-stabilized rare-earth phosphide (IMe4)3Yb(PPh2)2 (3) have been synthesized and fully characterized. Complexes 1-3 are active precatalysts for the hydrophosphination of alkenes, alkynes, and dienes and exhibited much superior catalytic activity to that of the NHC-free amide (THF)2Yb[N(SiMe)2]2. Complex 1 is the most active precursor among the three complexes. In particular, complex 1 can be recycled and recovered from the reaction media after the catalytic reactions. Furthermore, it was found that complex 3 could catalyze the polymerization of styrene to yield atactic polystyrenes with low molecular weights. To the best of our knowledge, complex 1 represents the first rare-earth complex that can be recovered after catalytic reactions.

Our Odyssey with Functionalized Chiral Phosphines: From Optical Resolution to Asymmetric Synthesis to Catalysis.

Our journey in organophosphorus research over the past 26 years is compiled in this Personal Account. Advances in palladacycle design have engendered a shift in our focus from template-mediated transformations to catalysis for the direct preparation of chiral phosphines containing a wide variety of functional groups. Novel approaches to access previously inaccessible phosphines and their applications in cancer research are summarized herein.

Calcium, Strontium and Barium Homogeneous Catalysts for Fine Chemicals Synthesis.

The large alkaline earths (Ae), calcium, strontium and barium, have in the past 15 years yielded a brand new generation of heteroleptic molecular catalysts for the production of fine chemicals. However, the integrity of these complexes is often plagued by ligand redistribution equilibria in solution. This personal account retraces the paths followed in our research group towards the design of stable heteroleptic alkalino-earth complexes, including the use of intramolecular noncovalent Ae···H-Si and Ae···F-C interactions. Their implementation as homogenous precatalysts for reactions such as the intramolecular and intermolecular hydroamination and hydrophosphination of activated alkenes, the hydrophosphonylation of ketones, and the dehydrogenative coupling of amines and hydrosilanes that enable the efficient and controlled formations of CP, CN, or SiN σ-bonds, is presented in a synthetic perspective that highlights their overall outstanding catalytic performance.

Computational assessment of electron density in metallo-organic nickel pincer complexes for formation of PC bonds.

Hydrophosphination is an atomically efficient method for introducing new carbon-phosphorous bonds in organic synthesis. New late-transition metal catalytic complexes are proposed to facilitate this process. These nickel-based complexes are analyzed using semiempirical (SE), Hartree-Fock (H-F), and density functional theory (DFT) models. H-F proves to be ineffective, while the SE approach has limited, qualitative use. DFT shows electron density at the metal center suitable for catalyzing bond formation in the proposed, reductive hydrophosphination mechanism. It also shows that the pincer complexes under investigation are relatively insensitive to solvent dielectric constant and to the chemical character of the monodentate ligand, both in terms of electron distribution and in terms of molecular orbital energies.

Pd-catalyzed enantiodivergent and regiospecific phospha-Michael addition of diphenylphosphine to 4-oxo-enamides: efficient access to chiral phosphinocarboxamides and their analogues.

The palladacycle-catalyzed asymmetric P-H addition of 4-oxo-enamides has been developed, which provides efficient access to phosphinocarboxamides and their analogues. Solvent-mediated reversal of stereoselectivity (ee from +96% to -92%) was observed, and the underlying mechanism that allows facile access to both enantiomers of the product by judicious choice of solvents is revealed.