Nickel Catalyzed Cross-Coupling of Aryl C-O Based Electrophiles with Aryl Neopentylglycolboronates

The efficiency of mesylates, sulfamates, esters, carbonates, carbamates, and methyl ethers as C-O-based electrophiles attached to the 1- or 2-position of naphthalene and to activated and nonactivated phenyl substrates was compared for the first time in Ni-catalyzed cross-coupling with phenyl neopentylglycolboronates containing electron-rich and electron-deficient substituents in their para-position. These experiments were performed in the presence of four different Ni(II)- and Ni(0)-based catalysts. Ni(II)-based catalysts mediate the cross-coupling of most 2-naphthyl C-O electrophiles with both arylboronic acids and with neopentylglycolboronates when K3PO4 is used as base. The same catalysts are not efficient when CsF is used as base. However, Ni(0)-based catalysts exhibit selective efficiency, and when reactive, their efficiency is higher than that of Ni(II)-based catalysts in the presence of both K3PO4 and CsF. These results provide both reaction conditions for the cross-coupling, and for the elaboration of orthogonal cross-coupling methodologies of various C-O based electrophiles with aryl neopentylglycolboronates. With the exception of mesylates and sulfamates the efficiency of all other 2-naphthyl C-O electrophiles was lower in cross-coupling with aryl neopentylglycolboronates than with arylboronic acids