This paper highlights Ni-catalyzed reductive trapping of secondary and tertiary alkyl radicals with both electron-rich and electron-deficient aryl isocyanides using zinc as the terminal reductant, affording 6-alkylated phenanthridine in good yields. The employment of carbene ligands necessitates the alkyl radical process, and represents the first utility in the Ni-catalyzed reductive conditions for the generation of unactivated alkyl radicals from the halide precursors.

Reported herein are the solid state studies of guanidinium/carboxylate salts or the zwitterionic species derived from amino acids. It was disclosed that carboxylates tend to bond to the two unsubstituted external guanidine (N–H)s, adopting assembly modes A and C depending on the geometry of the linkers. Rigid linkers that inhibit the guanidine and carboxylate planes parallel or on the same plane tend to give helical tapes. Bonding of carboxylate to the internal (N–H)s was observed (mode D) only when the external (N–H)s are not available as in 5, suggesting that external bonding modes A and C are possibly energetically more favored than the internal modes B and D. This work may be useful for the development of complex linear particularly helical structures and dimeric structures in polar solvents.Reported herein are the solid state studies of guanidinium/carboxylate salts or the zwitterionic species derived from amino acids. It was disclosed that carboxylates tend to bond to the two unsubstituted external guanidine (N–H)s, adopting assembly modes A and C depending on the geometry of the linkers. Bonding of carboxylate to the internal (N–H)s was observed only when the external (N–H)s are not available as in 5. This work may be useful for the development of complex linear particularly helical structures and dimeric structures in polar solvents.

This paper highlights Ni-catalyzed reductive trapping of secondary and tertiary alkyl radicals with both electron-rich and electron-deficient aryl isocyanides using zinc as the terminal reductant, affording 6-alkylated phenanthridine in good yields. The employment of carbene ligands necessitates the alkyl radical process, and represents the first utility in the Ni-catalyzed reductive conditions for the generation of unactivated alkyl radicals from the halide precursors.