ChemInform Abstract: Carbon-Sulfur Bond-Forming Reductive Elimination Involving sp-, sp2-, and sp3-Hybridized Carbon. Mechanism, Steric Effects, and Electronic Effects on Sulfide Formation.

Abstract

Palladium thiolato complexes [(L)Pd(R)(SR‘)], within which L is a chelating ligand such as DPPE, DPPP, DPPBz, DPPF, or TRANSPHOS, R is a methyl, alkenyl, aryl, or alkynyl ligand, and R‘ is an aryl or alkyl group, were synthesized by substitution or proton-transfer reactions. All of these thiolato complexes were found to undergo carbon−sulfur bond-forming reductive elimination in high yields to form dialkyl sulfides, diaryl sulfides, alkyl aryl sulfides, alkyl alkenyl sulfides, and alkyl alkynyl sulfides. Reductive eliminations forming alkenyl alkyl sulfides and aryl alkyl sulfides were the fastest. Eliminations of alkynyl alkyl sulfides were slower, and elimination of dialkyl sulfide was the slowest. Thus the relative rates for sulfide elimination as a function of the hybridization of the palladium-bound carbon follow the trend sp2 > sp ≫ sp3. Rates of reductive elimination were faster for cis-chelating phosphine ligands with larger bite angles. Kinetic studies, along with results from radical trapping re...