0000000001310756

AUTHOR

Tomás R. Belderrain

Favoring alkane primary carbon-hydrogen bond functionalization in supercritical carbon dioxide as reaction medium

The selectivity of a catalytic alkane functionalization process can be modified just changing the reaction medium from neat alkane to supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO2). A silica supported copper complex bearing an Nheterocyclic carbene ligand promotes the functionalization of carbon-hydrogen bonds of alkanes by transferring the CHCO2Et group from N2=CHCO2Et (ethyl diazoacetate, EDA). In neat hexane only 3% of the primary C-H bonds (ethyl heptanoate being the product) are functionalized in that manner, whereas the same reaction carried out in scCO2 provides a 30% yield in this linear ester. Such effect seems to be induced by an electronic density flux from the NHC ligand to the surroundin…

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Functionalization of CnH2n+2Alkanes: Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Enhances the Reactivity towards Primary Carbon-Hydrogen Bonds

The functionalization of the primary sites of alkanes is one of the more challenging areas in catalysis. In this context, a novel effect has been discovered that is responsible for an enhancement in the reactivity of the primary C-H bonds of alkanes in a catalytic system. The copper complex Cu(NCMe) (=hydrotris{[3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)-4-bromo]-pyrazol-1-yl}borate) catalyzes the functionalization of CnH2n+2 with ethyl diazoacetate upon inserting the CHCO2Et unit into C-H bonds. In addition, the selectivity of the reaction toward the primary sites significantly increased relative to that obtained in neat alkane upon using supercritical carbon dioxide as the reaction medium. This was attribu…

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Discovering Copper for Methane C–H Bond Functionalization

The copper complex Tp(CF3)2,BrCu(NCMe) (1, Tp(CF3)2,Br = hydrotris((3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)-4-bromo)-pyrazol-1-yl)borate) catalyzes the insertion of the CHCO2Et group (from ethyl diazoacetate N2CHCO2Et, EDA) into the C–H bonds of methane, in a homogeneous process that uses supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO2) as the reaction medium. Other light alkanes such as ethane, propane, and butane have been also functionalized with this copper-based catalyst, in the first example of the derivatization of the series of C1–C4 alkanes with this metal and a soluble catalyst.

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CCDC 1037192: Experimental Crystal Structure Determination

Related Article: Riccardo Gava, Andrea Olmos, Bárbara Noverges, Teresa Varea, Eleuterio Álvarez, Tomás R. Belderrain, Ana Caballero, Gregorio Asensio, and Pedro J. Pérez|2015|ACS Catalysis|5|3726|doi:10.1021/acscatal.5b00718

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CCDC 1037194: Experimental Crystal Structure Determination

Related Article: Riccardo Gava, Andrea Olmos, Bárbara Noverges, Teresa Varea, Eleuterio Álvarez, Tomás R. Belderrain, Ana Caballero, Gregorio Asensio, and Pedro J. Pérez|2015|ACS Catalysis|5|3726|doi:10.1021/acscatal.5b00718

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CCDC 1037193: Experimental Crystal Structure Determination

Related Article: Riccardo Gava, Andrea Olmos, Bárbara Noverges, Teresa Varea, Eleuterio Álvarez, Tomás R. Belderrain, Ana Caballero, Gregorio Asensio, and Pedro J. Pérez|2015|ACS Catalysis|5|3726|doi:10.1021/acscatal.5b00718

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