Alkyl-(Hetero)Aryl Bond Formation via Decarboxylative Cross-Coupling: A Systematic Analysis

Frederik Sandfort1, Matthew J O'Neill1, Josep Cornella1

  • 1The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI), North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA.

Summary

Redox-active esters enable efficient cross-coupling of alkyl carboxylic acids with aryl and heteroaryl compounds. This breakthrough expands synthetic capabilities for forming crucial carbon-carbon bonds in chemical science.

Related Concept Videos

C–C Bond Formation: Aldol Condensation Overview01:10

C–C Bond Formation: Aldol Condensation Overview

Aldol condensation is an important route in synthetic organic chemistry used to generate a new carbon–carbon bond under basic or acidic conditions. The aldol condensation reaction presented in Figure 1 constitutes an aldol addition reaction followed by the dehydration process.
17.3K
Electrophilic Aromatic Substitution: Friedel–Crafts Acylation of Benzene01:11

Electrophilic Aromatic Substitution: Friedel–Crafts Acylation of Benzene

The Friedel–Crafts acylation reactions involve the addition of an acyl group to an aromatic ring. These reactions proceed via electrophilic aromatic substitution by employing an acyl chloride and a Lewis acid catalyst such as aluminum chloride to form aryl ketone.
9.5K
Alkenes via Reductive Coupling of Aldehydes or Ketones: McMurry Reaction01:22

Alkenes via Reductive Coupling of Aldehydes or Ketones: McMurry Reaction

The radical dimerization of ketones or aldehydes gives vicinal diols through a pinacol coupling reaction. However, the behavior of titanium metals used for the reaction as a source of electrons is unusual. When the reaction is carried out in the presence of titanium, diols can be isolated at low temperatures. Else titanium further reacts with diols, forming alkenes through the McMurry reaction.
2.4K
C–C Bond Cleavage: Retro-Aldol Reaction00:57

C–C Bond Cleavage: Retro-Aldol Reaction

The reverse of the aldol addition reaction is called the retro-aldol reaction. Here, the carbon–carbon bond in the aldol product is cleaved under acidic or basic conditions to form two molecules of carbonyl compounds. The mechanism of the reaction consists of three steps.
In the first step, as depicted in Figure 1, the base deprotonates the β-hydroxy ketone at the hydroxyl group to form an alkoxide ion.
7.9K
Acid-Catalyzed α-Halogenation of Aldehydes and Ketones01:21

Acid-Catalyzed α-Halogenation of Aldehydes and Ketones

By replacing an α-hydrogen with a halogen, acid-catalyzed α-halogenation of aldehydes or ketones yields a monohalogenated product
In the first step of the mechanism, the acid protonates the carbonyl oxygen resulting in a resonance-stabilized cation, which subsequently loses an α-hydrogen to form an enol tautomer. The C=C bond in an enol is highly nucleophilic because of the electron-donating nature of the –OH group. Consequently, the double bond attacks an electrophilic halogen to form a...
5.0K
Preparation of Alkynes: Alkylation Reaction02:27

Preparation of Alkynes: Alkylation Reaction

Introduction
Alkylation of terminal alkynes with primary alkyl halides in the presence of a strong base like sodium amide is one of the common methods for the synthesis of longer carbon-chain alkynes. For example, treatment of 1-propyne with sodium amide followed by reaction with ethyl bromide yields 2-pentyne.
12.5K