Hydroalkylation of Aryl Alkenes with Organohalides Catalyzed by Molybdenum Oxido Based Lewis Pairs.

Three molybdenum(VI) dioxido complexes [MoO(L)] bearing Schiff base ligands were reacted with B(CF) to afford the corresponding adducts [MoO{OB(CF)}(L)], which were fully characterized. They exhibit Frustrated Lewis-Pairs reactivity when reacting with silanes. Especially, the [MoO{OB(CF)}(L)] complex with L=2,4-dimethyl-6-((phenylimino)methyl)phenol proved to be active as catalyst for the hydroalkylation of aryl alkenes with organohalides and for the Atom-Transfer Radical Addition (ATRA) of organohalides to aliphatic alkenes. A series of -dichloride and -dibromide compounds with potential for further derivatization were synthesized from simple alkenes and organohalides, like chloroform or bromoform, using low catalyst loading.