Selective Cross-Coupling of Unsaturated Substrates on Al^I

The Al^I compound NacNacAl (1, NacNac = [ArNC(Me)CHC(Me)NAr]^- , Ar = 2,6-iPr₂ C₆ H₃ ) serves as a template for the chemoselective coupling between carbonyls (benzophenone, fenchone, isophorone, p-tolyl benzoate, N,N-dimethylbenzamide, (1-phenylethylidene)aniline) and pyridine. With the CH-acidic ketone (1R)-(+) camphor, the reaction affords a hydrido alkoxide compound of Al, formed as the result of enolization, whereas an enolizable imine, (1-phenylethylidene)aniline, and the bulky ketone isophorone, still chemoselectively couple with pyridine. In contrast, reaction with the ester p-tolyl benzoate results in cleavage of the ester bond together with replacement of the alkoxy group by a hydrogen atom of the pyridine moiety. This study demonstrates that for carbonyl substrates featuring phenyl substituents, the reaction proceeds via intermediate formation of η² (C,X)-coordinated (X = O, N) carbonyl adducts, whereas the reaction of 1 with (R)-(-)-fenchone in the absence of pyridine leads to CH activation in the pendant isopropyl group of the Ar substituent of the NacNac ligand.