Visible light-induced ruthenium(ii)-catalyzed hydroarylation of unactivated olefins.

Hydroarylation reactions have emerged as a valuable tool for the direct functionalization of C-H bonds with ideal atom economy. However, common catalytic variants for these transformations largely require harsh reaction conditions, which often translate into reduced selectivites. In contrast, we herein report on a photo-induced hydroarylation of unactivated olefins at room temperature employing a readily available ruthenium(ii) catalyst.

Pd-Catalyzed C(sp)-H/C(sp)-H Coupling of Limonene.

Limonene undergoes a regioselective Pd(II)-catalyzed C(sp)-H/C(sp)-H coupling with acrylic acid esters and amides, α,β-unsaturated ketones, styrenes, and allyl acetate, affording novel 1,3-dienes. DFT computations gave results in accord with the experimental results and allowed for the formulation of a plausible mechanism. The postfunctionalization of one of the coupled products was achieved via a large-scale Sonogashira reaction conducted under micellar catalysis.