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Relevant academic research and scientific papers

Asymmetric photocatalysis over robust covalent organic frameworks with tetrahydroquinoline linkage

The asymmetric photocatalytic organic synthesis (APOS) process is a sustainable and environmentally benign method for the production of optically active chemicals with sunlight as an energy source. However, it still lacks efficient semiconductors with tun

Mechanism of the stereoselective α-alkylation of aldehydes driven by the photochemical activity of enamines

Herein we describe our efforts to elucidate the key mechanistic aspects of the previously reported enantioselective photochemical α-alkylation of aldehydes with electron-poor organic halides. The chemistry exploits the potential of chiral enamines, key organocatalytic intermediates in thermal asymmetric processes, to directly participate in the photoexcitation of substrates either by forming a photoactive electron donor-acceptor complex or by directly reaching an electronically excited state upon light absorption. These photochemical mechanisms generate radicals from closed-shell precursors under mild conditions. At the same time, the ground-state chiral enamines provide effective stereochemical control over the enantioselective radical-trapping process. We use a combination of conventional photophysical investigations, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and kinetic studies to gain a better understanding of the factors governing these enantioselective photochemical catalytic processes. Measurements of the quantum yield reveal that a radical chain mechanism is operative, while reaction-profile analysis and rate-order assessment indicate the trapping of the carbon-centered radical by the enamine, to form the carbon-carbon bond, as rate-determining. Our kinetic studies unveil the existence of a delicate interplay between the light-triggered initiation step and the radical chain propagation manifold, both mediated by the chiral enamines.

Photochemical activity of a key donor-acceptor complex can drive stereoselective catalytic α-alkylation of aldehydes

Asymmetric catalytic variants of sunlight-driven photochemical processes hold extraordinary potential for the sustainable preparation of chiral molecules. However, the involvement of short-lived electronically excited states inherent to any photochemical reaction makes it challenging for a chiral catalyst to dictate the stereochemistry of the products. Here, we report that readily available chiral organic catalysts, with well-known utility in thermal asymmetric processes, can also confer a high level of stereocontrol in synthetically relevant intermolecular carbon-carbon bond-forming reactions driven by visible light. A unique mechanism of catalysis is proposed, wherein the catalyst is involved actively in both the photochemical activation of the substrates (by inducing the transient formation of chiral electron donor-acceptor complexes) and the stereoselectivity-defining event. We use this approach to enable transformations that are extremely difficult under thermal conditions, such as the asymmetric α-alkylation of aldehydes with alkyl halides, the formation of all-carbon quaternary stereocentres and the control of remote stereochemistry.