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Enantioenriched azaarylmethyl amine derivatives are useful building blocks in synthetic and medicinal chemistry. To access these valuable motifs, an enantioselective palladium-catalyzed benzylation of azaarylmethyl amine pronucleophiles is introduced. Of note, this is a rare application of asymmetric (2-naphthyl)methylation of pro-nucleophiles with high p K a values (p K a ≈ 34 in DMSO). Control experiments support the notion that the coordination of Li + to the azaaryl nitrogen plays a critical role in the substitution process. With this procedure, enantioenriched (2-naphthyl)methylene azaarylmethyl amines with a variety of azaaryl groups (pyridyl, pyrazine, quinoxaline and isoquinoline) and cyclic and acyclic amines are readily obtained with good yields and enantioselectivities up to 99%. 

Hydroperoxyalkyl radicals (˙QOOH) are transient intermediates in the atmospheric oxidation of volatile organic compounds and combustion of hydrocarbon fuels in low temperature (<1000 K) environments. The carbon-centered ˙QOOH radicals are a critical juncture in the oxidation mechanism, but have generally eluded direct experimental observation of their structure, stability, and dissociation dynamics. Recently, this laboratory demonstrated that a prototypical ˙QOOH radical [˙CH 2 (CH 3 ) 2 COOH] can be synthesized by an alternative route, stabilized in a pulsed supersonic expansion, and characterized by its infrared (IR) spectroscopic signature and unimolecular dissociation rate to OH radical and cyclic ether products. The present study focuses on a partially deuterated ˙QOOD analog ˙CH 2 (CH 3 ) 2 COOD, generated in the laboratory by H-atom abstraction from partially deuterated tert -butyl hydroperoxide, (CH 3 ) 3 COOD. IR spectral features associated with jet-cooled and isolated ˙QOOD radicals are observed in the vicinity of the transition state (TS) barrier leading to OD radical and cyclic ether products. The overtone OD stretch (2 ν OD ) of ˙QOOD is identified by IR action spectroscopy with UV laser-induced fluorescence detection of OD products. Direct time-domain measurement of the unimolecular dissociation rate for ˙QOOD (2 ν OD ) extends prior rate measurements for ˙QOOH. Partial deuteration results in a small increase in the TS barrier predicted by high level electronic structure calculations due to changes in zero-point energies; the imaginary frequency is unchanged. Comparison of the unimolecular decay rates obtained experimentally with those predicted theoretically for both ˙QOOH and ˙QOOD confirm that unimolecular decay is enhanced by heavy-atom tunneling involving simultaneous O–O bond elongation and C–C–O angle contraction along the reaction pathway. 

Chemoselectivity is one of the most challenging issues facing the chemical sciences. In this study, the first highly chemoselective reactions of N -acylpyrroles via either an anionic Fries rearrangement (pyrrole dance) or a C–H functionalization of toluene to provide aryl benzyl ketones are advanced. This efficient and operationally simple approach enables the synthesis of either 2-aroylpyrroles or aryl benzyl ketones in good to excellent yields under transition metal-free conditions. The choice of base plays a crucial role in controlling the chemoselectivity. The aroylation of toluene derivatives was observed with N -acylpyrroles when subjected to KN(SiMe 3 ) 2 , while anionic Fries rearrangement products were produced with LiN(SiMe 3 ) 2 . Surprisingly, cross-over experiments indicate that the anionic Fries rearrangement is an intermolecular process. The aroylation reaction has the advantage over Weinreb amide chemistry in that it does not require preformed organometallic reagents or cryogenic temperatures. 

A mild photoredox catalyzed construction of sulfides, disulfides, selenides, sulfoxides and sulfones from unstrained ketone precursors is introduced. Combination of this deacylative process with S_N2 or coupling reactions provides novel and convenient modular strategies toward unsymmetrical or symmetric disulfides. Reactivity studies favor a bromine radical that initiates a HAT (Hydrogen Atom Transfer) from the aminal intermediate resulting in expulsion of a C‐centered radical that is intercepted to make C−S and C−Se bonds. Gram scale reactions, broad substrate scope and tolerance towards various functional groups render this method appealing for future applications in the synthesis of organosulfur and selenium complexes.

 

A mild photoredox catalyzed construction of sulfides, disulfides, selenides, sulfoxides and sulfones from unstrained ketone precursors is introduced. Combination of this deacylative process with S_N2 or coupling reactions provides novel and convenient modular strategies toward unsymmetrical or symmetric disulfides. Reactivity studies favor a bromine radical that initiates a HAT (Hydrogen Atom Transfer) from the aminal intermediate resulting in expulsion of a C‐centered radical that is intercepted to make C−S and C−Se bonds. Gram scale reactions, broad substrate scope and tolerance towards various functional groups render this method appealing for future applications in the synthesis of organosulfur and selenium complexes.

 

In the last 20 years, efficient transition metal catalysts for the α‐arylation of enolates have been introduced. Despite the popularity and utility of these reactions, there remains room for improvement (reduced costs, elimination of transition metals and specialized ligands). Herein is reported a general, scalable and green method for aroylation of simple diarylmethane pronucleophiles through direct acyl C−N cleavage ofN‐Bn−N‐Boc arylamides andN‐acylpyrroles under transition metal‐free conditions. Importantly, a 1 : 1 ratio of the amide to the pronucleophile is employed. Unlike use of Weinreb amides, this method avoids preformed organometallics (organolithium and Grignard reagents) and does not employ cryogenic temperatures, which are difficult and costly to achieve on scale. The operationally simple protocol provides straightforward access to a variety of sterically and electronically diverse 1,2,2‐triarylethanones, a group of compounds with high‐value in medicinal chemistry.

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