Gold(I)-catalyzed enantioselective bromocyclization reactions of allenes

The enantioselective bromocyclization of allenes is accomplished through the use of a chiral dinuclear gold complex and/or chiral phosphate anions in the presence of an N-bromolactam as an electrophilic bromine source. This method provides access to heterocyclic vinyl bromides with an allylic stereocenter in excellent yield and enantioselectivity. These enantioenriched vinyl bromides may serve as a handle for further derivatization via cross-coupling reactions. © 2013 The Royal Society of Chemistry

Mechanism and Kinetics of Isobutene Formation from Ethanol and Acetone over Zn xZr yO z

Isobutene is a specialty chemical used in the production of fuel additives, polymers, and other high-value products. While normally produced by steam cracking of petroleum naphtha, there is increasing interest in identifying routes to synthesizing isobutene from biomass-derived compounds, such as ethanol and acetone. Recent work has shown that zinc-zirconium mixed oxides are effective and selective catalysts for producing isobutene from ethanol. However, the reaction pathway, the roles of acidic and basic sites, and the role of water in promoting stability and selectivity are not yet clearly defined. In this study, a series of zinc-zirconium mixed oxides with tunable acid-base properties were synthesized and characterized with XRD, Raman spectroscopy, BET, CO -TPD, NH -TPD, and IR DRIFTS of adsorbed pyridine in order to probe the roles of acid and base sites for each step in the ethanol-to-isobutene reaction pathway. The observed reaction kinetics, supported by modeling of these kinetics, suggest that the reaction of ethanol to isobutene proceeds via a five-step sequence. Ethanol first undergoes dehydrogenation to acetaldehyde, which is then oxidized to acetic acid. This product undergoes ketonization to produce acetone, which dimerizes to form diacetone alcohol. The latter product either decomposes directly to isobutene and acetic acid or produces these products by dehydration to mesityl oxide and subsequent hydrolysis. The acetic acid formed undergoes ketonization to produce additional acetone. The dispersion of zinc oxide on zirconia was found to produce a balance between Lewis acidic and basic sites that prevent the loss of ethanol via dehydration to ethylene and promote the cascade reactions of ethanol and acetone to isobutene. Water, while inhibiting both isobutene and mesityl oxide formation, improves isobutene selectivity by suppressing side reactions such as unimolecular dehydration, acetone decomposition, and deactivation due to coke formation. 2

Gold(I)-catalyzed enantioselective bromocyclization reactions of allenes

The enantioselective bromocyclization of allenes is accomplished through the use of a chiral dinuclear gold complex and/or chiral phosphate anions in the presence of an N-bromolactam as an electrophilic bromine source. This method provides access to heterocyclic vinyl bromides with an allylic stereocenter in excellent yield and enantioselectivity. These enantioenriched vinyl bromides may serve as a handle for further derivatization via cross-coupling reactions. © 2013 The Royal Society of Chemistry

Mechanism and kinetics of 1-dodecanol etherification over tungstated zirconia

Growing interest in finding renewable alternatives to conventional fossil fuels and petroleum-derived specialty chemicals has motivated the investigation of biomass-derived alcohols to make ethers as diesel additives or lubricants. To optimize the direct etherification of long chain alcohols in the liquid phase, it is necessary to develop an understanding of the kinetics and mechanism of etherification and dehydration reactions. In this study, tungstated zirconia was identified as a selective solid-acid catalyst for the liquid-phase etherification of 1-dodecanol. Investigations of the mechanism and kinetics of this reaction suggest that cooperation between Brønsted- and Lewis-acid sites on tungstated zirconia enhances the selectivity to ether by increasing the surface concentration of adsorbed alcohol, thereby promoting bi-molecular ether formation relative to unimolecular alcohol dehydration. The suggested rate limiting step for etherification is the formation of a C–O bond between two adsorbed alcohol molecules, and the suggested rate-limiting step for dehydration is the cleavage of the C–H bond of the β-carbon atom in an adsorbed alcohol. Measurements of the kinetic isotope effects for etherification and dehydration support the proposed mechanism. A microkinetic model based on the proposed mechanism for dodecanol etherification and dehydration over tungstated zirconia accurately describes the observed effects of alcohol concentration and product inhibition

Mechanism and kinetics of 1-dodecanol etherification over tungstated zirconia

Growing interest in finding renewable alternatives to conventional fossil fuels and petroleum-derived specialty chemicals has motivated the investigation of biomass-derived alcohols to make ethers as diesel additives or lubricants. To optimize the direct etherification of long chain alcohols in the liquid phase, it is necessary to develop an understanding of the kinetics and mechanism of etherification and dehydration reactions. In this study, tungstated zirconia was identified as a selective solid-acid catalyst for the liquid-phase etherification of 1-dodecanol. Investigations of the mechanism and kinetics of this reaction suggest that cooperation between Brønsted- and Lewis-acid sites on tungstated zirconia enhances the selectivity to ether by increasing the surface concentration of adsorbed alcohol, thereby promoting bi-molecular ether formation relative to unimolecular alcohol dehydration. The suggested rate limiting step for etherification is the formation of a C–O bond between two adsorbed alcohol molecules, and the suggested rate-limiting step for dehydration is the cleavage of the C–H bond of the β-carbon atom in an adsorbed alcohol. Measurements of the kinetic isotope effects for etherification and dehydration support the proposed mechanism. A microkinetic model based on the proposed mechanism for dodecanol etherification and dehydration over tungstated zirconia accurately describes the observed effects of alcohol concentration and product inhibition

Enantioselective α-Amination Enabled by a BINAM-Derived Phase-Transfer Catalyst.

Chiral anion phase-transfer of aryldiazonium cations was utilized to achieve highly enantioselective α-amination of carbonyl compounds. A broad scope of indanone- and benzosuberone-derived substrates was amenable to this strategy. Critical to obtaining high levels of enantioselectivity was the use of BINAM-derived phosphoric acids. The utility of this transformation was demonstrated through facile conversion of diazene products to valuable α-amino acid derivatives

A powerful chiral counterion strategy for asymmetric transition metal catalysis

Traditionally, transition metal-catalyzed enantioselective transformations rely on chiral ligands tightly bound to the metal to induce asymmetric product distributions. Here we report high enantioselectivities conferred by a chiral counterion in a metal-catalyzed reaction. Two different transformations catalyzed by cationic gold( I) complexes generated products in 90 to 99% enantiomeric excess with the use of chiral binaphthol-derived phosphate anions. Furthermore, we show that the chiral counterion can be combined additively with chiral ligands to enable an asymmetric transformation that cannot be achieved by either method alone. This concept of relaying chiral information via an ion pair should be applicable to a vast number of metal-mediated processes

Production of Fuels and Chemicals from Biomass: Condensation Reactions and Beyond

Renewable resources and bio-based feedstocks may present a sustainable alternative to petrochemical sources to satisfy modern society's ever-increasing demand for energy and chemicals. However, the conversion processes needed for these future bio-refineries will likely differ from those currently used in the petrochemical industry. Biotechnology and chemocatalysis offer routes for converting biomass into a variety of molecules that can serve as platform chemicals. While a host of technologies can be leveraged for biomass upgrading, condensation reactions are significant because they have the potential to upgrade these bio-derived feedstocks while minimizing the loss of carbon and the generation of by-products. This review surveys both the biological and chemical catalytic routes to producing platform chemicals from renewable sources and describes advances in condensation chemistry and strategies for the conversion of these platform chemicals into fuels and high-value chemicals