A shelf-stable gem-difluorinated reagent β-tosyloxy-γ,γ-difluroallylboronic acid pinacol ester has been prepared, which can be easily used for the preparation of gem-difluorinated homoallylic alcohols through Br⊘nsted acid (PhCO₂H) catalyzed gem-difluoroallylation of aldehydes and ketone.

Although important progress has been made in the fluoroalkylation reactions, the transition-metal-catalyzed carbonylative fluoroalkylation reaction remains challenging so far. Herein, we report the first example of a Pd-catalyzed carbonylation of difluoroalkyl bromides with (hetero)arylboronic acids under one atmosphere pressure of CO. The reaction can also be extended to the aryl potassium trifluoroborate salts. The advantages of this protocol are synthetic simplicity, broad substrate scope, and excellent functional group compatibility. The resulting difluoroalkyl ketones can serve as versatile building blocks for the synthesis of various useful fluorinated compounds.

A nickel-catalyzed cross-coupling between (hetero)arylborons and unactivated 1-bromo-1,1-difluoroalkanes has been developed. The use of two ligands (a bidentate bipyridine-based ligand, 4,4′-ditBu-bpy, and a monodentate pyridine-based ligand, DMAP) offers a highly efficient nickel-based catalytic system to prepare difluoroalkylated arenes which have important applications in medicinal chemistry.

A nickel-catalyzed cross-coupling between (hetero)arylborons and unactivated 1-bromo-1,1-difluoroalkanes has been developed. The use of two ligands (a bidentate bipyridine-based ligand, 4,4′-ditBu-bpy, and a monodentate pyridine-based ligand, DMAP) offers a highly efficient nickel-based catalytic system to prepare difluoroalkylated arenes which have important applications in medicinal chemistry.

Although important progress has been made in the fluoroalkylation reactions, the transition-metal-catalyzed carbonylative fluoroalkylation reaction remains challenging so far. Herein, we report the first example of a Pd-catalyzed carbonylation of difluoroalkyl bromides with (hetero)arylboronic acids under one atmosphere pressure of CO. The reaction can also be extended to the aryl potassium trifluoroborate salts. The advantages of this protocol are synthetic simplicity, broad substrate scope, and excellent functional group compatibility. The resulting difluoroalkyl ketones can serve as versatile building blocks for the synthesis of various useful fluorinated compounds.

An ortho-selective CF bond borylation between N-heterocycle-substituted polyfluoroarenes and Bpin-Bpin with simple and commercially available [Rh(cod)₂]BF₄ as a catalyst is now reported. The reaction proceeds under mild reaction conditions with high efficiency and broad substrate scope, even toward monofluoroarene, thus providing a facile access to a wide range of borylated fluoroarenes that are useful for photoelectronic materials. Preliminary mechanistic studies reveal that a Rh^III/V catalytic cycle via a key intermediate rhodium(III) hydride complex [(H)Rh^IIIL_n(Bpin)] may be involved in the reaction.

The nickel-catalyzed fluoromethylation of arylboronic acids was achieved with the industrial raw material fluoromethyl bromide (CH₂FBr) as the coupling partner. The reaction proceeded under mild reaction conditions with high efficiency; it features the use of a low-cost nickel catalyst, synthetic simplicity, and excellent functional-group compatibility, and provides facile access to fluoromethylated biologically relevant molecules. Preliminary mechanistic studies showed that a single-electron-transfer (SET) pathway is involved in the catalytic cycle.

An efficient palladium-catalyzed Heck-type reaction of fluoroalkyl halides, including perfluoroalkyl bromides, trifluoromethyl iodides, and difluoroalkyl bromides, has been developed. The reaction proceeds under mild reaction conditions with high efficiency and broad substrate scope, and provides a general and straightforward access to fluoroalkylated alkenes which are of interest in life and material sciences.

An efficient palladium-catalyzed Heck-type reaction of fluoroalkyl halides, including perfluoroalkyl bromides, trifluoromethyl iodides, and difluoroalkyl bromides, has been developed. The reaction proceeds under mild reaction conditions with high efficiency and broad substrate scope, and provides a general and straightforward access to fluoroalkylated alkenes which are of interest in life and material sciences.

The nickel-catalyzed fluoromethylation of arylboronic acids was achieved with the industrial raw material fluoromethyl bromide (CH₂FBr) as the coupling partner. The reaction proceeded under mild reaction conditions with high efficiency; it features the use of a low-cost nickel catalyst, synthetic simplicity, and excellent functional-group compatibility, and provides facile access to fluoromethylated biologically relevant molecules. Preliminary mechanistic studies showed that a single-electron-transfer (SET) pathway is involved in the catalytic cycle.

An ortho-selective CF bond borylation between N-heterocycle-substituted polyfluoroarenes and Bpin-Bpin with simple and commercially available [Rh(cod)₂]BF₄ as a catalyst is now reported. The reaction proceeds under mild reaction conditions with high efficiency and broad substrate scope, even toward monofluoroarene, thus providing a facile access to a wide range of borylated fluoroarenes that are useful for photoelectronic materials. Preliminary mechanistic studies reveal that a Rh^III/V catalytic cycle via a key intermediate rhodium(III) hydride complex [(H)Rh^IIIL_n(Bpin)] may be involved in the reaction.

gem-Difluoropropargyl bromides are versatile intermediates in organic synthesis, but have rarely been employed in transition-metal-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions. The first palladium-catalyzed gem-difluoropropargylation of organoboron reagents with gem-difluoropropargyl bromides is now reported. The reaction proceeds under mild reaction conditions with high regioselectivity; it features a broad substrate scope and excellent functional-group compatibility and thus provides an attractive approach for the synthesis of complex fluorinated molecules, in particular for drug discovery and development.

Fluorinated olefin-containing benzothiadiazoles have important applications in optoelectronic materials. Herein, we reported the direct olefination of fluorinated benzothiadiazoles, as catalyzed by palladium. The reaction proceeds under mild reaction conditions and shows high functional-group compatibility. A preliminary study of the properties of the resulting symmetrical and unsymmetrical olefin-containing fluorinated benzothiadiazoles in red-light-emitting dyes has also been conducted.

Transition-metal-catalyzed difluoroalkylation of aromatics remains challenging despite the importance of difluoroalkylated arenes in medicinal chemistry. Herein, the first successful example of nickel-catalyzed difluoroalkylation of aryl boronic acids is described. The reaction allows access to a variety of functionalized difluoromethyl bromides and chlorides, and paves the way to highly cost-efficient synthesis of a wide range of difluoroalkylated arenes. The notable features of this protocol are its high generality, excellent functional-group compatibility, low-cost nickel-catalyst, and practicality for gram-scale production, thus providing a facile method for applications in drug discovery and development.

The palladium-catalyzed difluoroalkylation of aryl boronic acids with bromodifluoromethylphosphonate, bromodifluoroacetate, and further derivatives has been developed. This method provides a facile and useful access to a series of functionalized difluoromethylated arenes (ArCF₂PO(OEt)₂, ArCF₂CO₂Et, and ArCF₂CONR¹R²) that have important applications in drug discovery and development. Preliminary mechanistic studies reveal that a single electron transfer (SET) pathway may be involved in the catalytic cycle.

gem-Difluoropropargyl bromides are versatile intermediates in organic synthesis, but have rarely been employed in transition-metal-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions. The first palladium-catalyzed gem-difluoropropargylation of organoboron reagents with gem-difluoropropargyl bromides is now reported. The reaction proceeds under mild reaction conditions with high regioselectivity; it features a broad substrate scope and excellent functional-group compatibility and thus provides an attractive approach for the synthesis of complex fluorinated molecules, in particular for drug discovery and development.

Transition-metal-catalyzed difluoroalkylation of aromatics remains challenging despite the importance of difluoroalkylated arenes in medicinal chemistry. Herein, the first successful example of nickel-catalyzed difluoroalkylation of aryl boronic acids is described. The reaction allows access to a variety of functionalized difluoromethyl bromides and chlorides, and paves the way to highly cost-efficient synthesis of a wide range of difluoroalkylated arenes. The notable features of this protocol are its high generality, excellent functional-group compatibility, low-cost nickel-catalyst, and practicality for gram-scale production, thus providing a facile method for applications in drug discovery and development.

The palladium-catalyzed difluoroalkylation of aryl boronic acids with bromodifluoromethylphosphonate, bromodifluoroacetate, and further derivatives has been developed. This method provides a facile and useful access to a series of functionalized difluoromethylated arenes (ArCF₂PO(OEt)₂, ArCF₂CO₂Et, and ArCF₂CONR¹R²) that have important applications in drug discovery and development. Preliminary mechanistic studies reveal that a single electron transfer (SET) pathway may be involved in the catalytic cycle.

An effective and facile method for preparation of partially fluorinated aromatics via Nickel catalyzed, chelation-assisted ortho selective hydrodefluorination of polyfluoroarnes with triethylsilane has been developed, in which N-containing heterocycles were used as directing groups. The advantage of this protocol is its simple catalytic system with use of inexpensive and readily available NiCl₂·6H₂O as a catalyst.

A general and efficient method for the highly enantioselective alkynylation of ketoimines through a zinc/1,1′-bi-2-naphthol (BINOL)-catalyzed process has been developed. A variety of ketoimines, including α-fluoroalkyl α-imine esters, α-aryl α-imine esters, and trifluoromethyl aryl ketoimines, are applicable and provide their corresponding quaternary propargyl amines in excellent yields with high ee values (up to 99 % ee). Both the steric and electronic effects of substituents at the 3,3′ positions of BINOL are critical for the reaction efficiency and enantioselectivity. To demonstrate the usefulness of the method, (R)-α-CF₃ α-proline has been prepared in a highly efficient manner. The notable features of this protocol are its broad substrate scope, high reaction efficiency (up to 99 %) and enantioselectivity (up to 99 % ee), low catalyst loading (5 mol % of BINOL derivative), and mild reaction conditions.