Chapter One - Palladium-Mediated Organofluorine Chemistry

Abstract

Abstract The importance of organofluorine compounds in pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals has encouraged the study of their synthesis since the middle of the twentieth century. In recent years, there has been a huge increase in the work devoted to improve the use of transition metals as catalysts for the formation of C F bonds and its activation, and also to the development of fluoroalkylation and fluoroarylation reactions. Palladium complexes, as undisputed protagonists in the catalyzed reactions for the formation of C C or C heteroatom bonds, have been employed for these reactions. However, the particular properties of fluorine and fluorinated hydrocarbons do not allow a straightforward translation of the palladium-catalyzed methodologies. This chapter provides an overview of the progress in palladium-catalyzed synthesis of organofluorinated compounds. It also accounts for those studies on the reactivity of palladium complexes bearing fluoride or fluorinated groups that allow to rationalize why some catalysts are effective and why some others are not. Although progress in the understanding of these chemical systems has been enormous in recent years, many aspects of their reactivity are still poorly understood, so, predictably, the field will remain an active focus of research in coming years.