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WE Piers

Publications and source records attributed to WE Piers.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

B(C(6)F(5))(3)-Catalyzed hydrosilation of imines via silyliminium intermediates

A broad range of benzaldimines and ketimines can be hydrosilated efficiently, employing B(C(6)F(5))(3) as a catalyst in conjunction with PhMe(2)SiH. Spectral evidence supports the intermediacy of a silyliminium cation with a hydridoborate counterion formed via abstraction of a hydride from PhMe(2)SiH by B(C(6)F(5))(3) in the presence of imines.

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Studies on the mechanism of B(C(6)F(5))(3)-catalyzed hydrosilation of carbonyl functions

The strong organoborane Lewis acid B(C(6)F(5))(3) catalyzes the hydrosilation (using R(3)SiH) of aromatic and aliphatic carbonyl functions at convenient rates with loadings of 1-4%. For aldehydes and ketones, the product silyl ethers are isolated in 75-96% yield; for esters, the aldehydes produced upon workup of the silyl acetal products can be obtained in 45-70% yield. Extensive mechanistic studies point to an unusual silane activation mechanism rather than one involving borane activation of the carbonyl function. Quantitative kinetic studies show that the least basic substrates are hydrosilated at the fastest rates; furthermore, increased concentrations of substrate have an inhibitory effect on the observed reaction rate. Paradoxically, the most basic substrates are reduced selectively, albeit at a slower rate, in competition experiments. The borane thus must dissociate from the carbonyl to activate the silane via hydride abstraction; the incipient silylium species then coordinates the most basic function, which is selectively reduced by [HB(C(6)F(5))(3)](-). In addition to the kinetic data, this mechanistic proposal is supported by a kinetic isotope effect of 1.4(5) for the hydrosilation of acetophenone, the observation that B(C(6)F(5))(3) catalyzes H/D and H/H scrambling in silanes in the absence of substrate, computational investigations, the synthesis of models for proposed intermediates, and other isotope labeling and crossover experiments.

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Mechanistic studies on selectivity in the B(C6F5)3-catalyzed allylstannation of aldehydes: is hypercoordination at boron responsible?

[structure: see text] The selective, B(C6F5)3-catalyzed allylstannation of aldehydes with proximal donor groups is shown to proceed via borane abstraction of the allyl group from the tin reagent and activation of the substrate by "Bu3Sn+". This is supported by a number of 19F NMR experiments. The selectivity of the reaction is not attributable to hypercoordinate boron as proposed by the discoverers of this highly selective reaction but likely involves chelation at tin.

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Activation of

Reversible C(6)F(5) transfer takes place between the boron centers in the anion formed by methide abstraction from [MeZr{N(SiMe(3))(2)}(3)] or [Cp(2)ZrMe(2)] (L(n)M-CH(3) in the reaction scheme) by the perfluorinated diborane 1. The solution chemistry of the metallocenium ion pairs formed from 1 and [Cp(2)ZrMe(2)] is correlated with the observed ethylene polymerization behavior of 1 in comparison to the monoborane B(C(6)F(5))(3), the related diborane 1,2-C(6)H(4)[B(C(6)F(5))(2)](2), and the 9,10-diboraanthracene compound 9,10-(C(6)F(5))(2)C(12)B(2)F(8).

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