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Updated: Mar 28, 2026

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Published on: November 30, 2022
Cobalt-Catalyzed Benzylic Borylation: Enabling Polyborylation and Functionalization of Remote, Unactivated C(sp(3))-H
W Neil Palmer1, Jennifer V Obligacion1, Iraklis Pappas1
1Department of Chemistry, Princeton University , Princeton, New Jersey 08544, United States.
Abstract:
Cobalt dialkyl and bis(carboxylate) complexes bearing α-diimine ligands have been synthesized and demonstrated as active for the C(sp(3))-H borylation of a range of substituted alkyl arenes using B2Pin2 (Pin = pinacolate) as the boron source. At longer reaction times, rare examples of polyborylation were observed, and in the case of toluene, all three benzylic C-H positions were functionalized. Coupling benzylic C-H activation with alkyl isomerization enabled a base-metal-catalyzed method for the borylation of remote, unactivated C(sp(3))-H bonds.
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