Is Fe-catalyzed <i>ortho</i> C–H Arylation of Benzamides Sensitive to Steric Hindrance and Directing Group?

The previously reported Fe-catalyzed ortho C–H arylation of benzamides relied on bi- or tridentate amide groups and specific iron ligands and was sensitive to steric hindrance. By using new mixed titanates, our present protocol accommodates various weakly coordinating benzamides and tolerates high steric hindrance and sensitive functional groups only under the catalysis of FeCl3 and TMEDA. A wide range of privileged condensed ring compounds can thus be facilely accessed

Synergism of Fe/Ti Enabled Regioselective Arene Difunctionalization

Regioselective difunctionalization of arenes remains a long-standing challenge in organic chemistry. We report a novel and general Fe/Ti synergistic methodology for regioselective synthesis of various polysubstituted arenes through either E/E′ or Nu/E ortho difunctionalizations of arenes. Preliminary results showed that an unprecedented 1,2-Fe/Ti heterobimetallic arylene intermediate bearing two distinct C–M bonds is essential to the regioselective difunctionalization

Fe-Catalyzed Difunctionalization of Aryl Titanates Enabled by Fe/Ti Synergism

Fe-catalyzed difunctionalization of aryl titanates via double C–H activation has been developed, where aryl titanates were arylated via ortho C–H activation, followed by ipso electrophilic trapping of the C–Ti bond. The ortho C–H arylation should be promoted by a 1,2-Fe/Ti synergistic heterobimetallic arylene intermediate and represents an ortho C–H ferration directed by a readily transformable C–Ti group. Common benzamides, esters, and nitriles function as arylating reagents, which involves another ortho C–H activation directed by these functionalities

Sinudenoids A–E, C₁₉-Norcembranoid Diterpenes with Unusual Scaffolds from the Soft Coral <i>Sinularia densa</i>

Five new furanobutenolide-derived C19-norcembranoid diterpenes, sinudenoids A–E (1–5, respectively), were isolated from the soft coral Sinularia densa. Sinudenoid A (1) possesses an uncommon 5/5/11-fused tricyclic ring system. Sinudenoids B–D (2–4, respectively) share the same tetracyclic 5/5/6/6 ring system but represent two kinds of new skeletons. Sinudenoid E (5) is the second compound with the rare 8/8 bicyclic carbon core. A plausible biosynthesis pathway for compounds 1–6 is proposed. Compound 5 exhibits strong anti-inflammatory activity in the zebrafish model

Hydrophobic Organic–Inorganic Hybrid Surface Modification-Induced Uniform Zinc Deposition and Prohibited Side Reactions toward a Ultra-stable Zinc Anode

Zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) are ideal candidates for new ideal energy devices due to large theoretical capacity, scale production, and handleability. However, the problem of dendrite growth and side reactions originated from an uneven Zn plating/stripping process, and the direct contact of the Zn metal with the electrolyte reduces the cycle stability and lifetime of ZIBs. In this research, organic hydrophobic polyvinylidene fluoride and uniformly distributed nano-silicon particles (PVDF-Si) was constructed as a functional protection layer to promote the cycle stability of the Zn anode. Silicon nanoparticles can uniformly distribute electric field and Zn2+ flux on the Zn anode surface which can guide the uniform Zn deposition and avoid dendrite growth. The hydrophobic PVDF can reduce the free water content on the Zn anode surface, which significantly inhibits side reactions. With the coordinate inhibition of the PVDF-Si modification layer, the PVDF-Si@Zn anode displays dendrite-free Zn plating/stripping with a low overpotential of 38 mV after 3080 h in PVDF-Si@Zn||PVDF-Si@Zn batteries. Meanwhile, the PVDF-Si@Zn||V2O5 battery also achieved a high stability with a 79.38% capacity retention and nearly 100% of the coulomb efficiency after 500 cycles. The hydrophobic polymer–nanomaterial interface modification provides a new strategy for the protection of the Zn anode