Chem
ArticleDFT-Guided Phosphoric-Acid-Catalyzed Atroposelective Arene Functionalization of Nitrosonaphthalene
The Bigger Picture
Highly efficient conversion of inexpensive and readily available arene materials into high-value-added chiral molecules is of great importance in modern synthetic chemistry given the enormous potential of such structures in functional materials, pharmaceuticals, and other relevant chemical industries. Organocatalytic nucleophilic aromatic substitution enabled by an azo group offers an effective approach to enantioselective functionalization of naphthalene C–H bonds featuring an intramolecular oxidation of an unstabilized σH adduct. Premised on density functional theory (DFT) calculations, nitroso has emerged as another promising activating and oxidative group, whose synthetic potential is substantiated in the atroposelective synthesis of several groups of representative biaryl atropisomers processed by a chiral phosphoric acid catalyst. The success of this reaction explicitly exemplifies the ability of computational tools to streamline organic synthesis with intensified robustness in the disclosed strategy.