Synlett 2022; 33(17): 1739-1744
DOI: 10.1055/a-1914-1518
letter

Potassium Alkoxide as an Efficient Catalyst for Nucleophilic Perfluoroalkylation: Attempt at Anion-Controlled Enantioselective Insertion of a Trifluoromethyl Group

Taiga Yurino
a   Division of Applied Chemistry and Frontier Chemistry Center, Faculty of Engineering, Hokkaido University, Kita 13, Nishi 8, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-8628, Japan
,
Hiroyuki Yamashita
b   Graduate School of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, Hokkaido University, Kita 8, Nishi 5, Sapporo, Hokkaido, 060-0808, Japan
,
Yuanrong Shan
b   Graduate School of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, Hokkaido University, Kita 8, Nishi 5, Sapporo, Hokkaido, 060-0808, Japan
,
Zhen Wu
b   Graduate School of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, Hokkaido University, Kita 8, Nishi 5, Sapporo, Hokkaido, 060-0808, Japan
,
a   Division of Applied Chemistry and Frontier Chemistry Center, Faculty of Engineering, Hokkaido University, Kita 13, Nishi 8, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-8628, Japan
› Author Affiliations
This work was supported by Grants-in-Aid from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Sciences (JSPS) (Nos. 19H02706 and 19K15548). T.Y. also acknowledges support from the Toyota Riken Scholar Program and the Feasibility Study Program of the Frontier Chemistry Center, Faculty of Engineering, Hokkaido University.


Abstract

Potassium alkoxide was found to be a highly active catalyst for the nucleophilic trifluoromethylation of carbonyl compounds. The catalytic system was successfully applied to the reactions of both aldehydes and ketones, affording the corresponding trifluoromethylated products in high yields at low catalyst loadings (0.1–0.01 mol%) in several solvents, such as THF, toluene, and CH2Cl2. In addition, the potassium salt of a Ru(II) complex bearing an (S)-2,2′-bis[bis(3,5-dimethylphenyl)phosphinyl]-1,1′-binaphthalene [(S)-XylBINAP] ligand and two l-threoninate ligands, prepared in situ, catalyzed the enantioselective trifluoromethylation of aromatic aldehydes, although the ee values were not satisfactory (less than 20%).

Supporting Information



Publication History

Received: 25 June 2022

Accepted after revision: 01 August 2022

Accepted Manuscript online:
01 August 2022

Article published online:
09 September 2022

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