On February 9, 2021, the team led by Researcher Feng Zhang from the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Chongqing University, published a research paper titled “Experimental and Computational Studies on the Iron-Catalyzed Selective and Controllable Defluorosilylation of Unactivated Aliphatic gem-Difluoroalkenes” in Angewandte Chemie International Edition, a top journal on chemistry (factor of influence in 2020: 13.05). Researcher Feng Zhang from the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Chongqing University and Professor Peng Qian from Nankai University are corresponding co-authors of the paper.

This is the first reported case of the use of Fe catalyzed method to stimulate defluorosilane reaction of unactivated difluoro olefins by C-F bond cleavage, which can efficiently and selectively synthesize cyclobissilylated olefins and (E)-silylated fluoroolefins under mild conditions. The reaction methodology has high functional group compatibility, and excellent regioselectivity and stereoselectivity, and can be used for the later silylation of biological related molecules, and provides more opportunities for pharmaceutical chemistry.

In collaboration with Professor Peng Qian of School of Chemistry, Nankai University, and by means of mechanism research and DFT calculation, Feng Zhang's scientific research team found that the catalytic system for the synthesis of bissilylated olefins involves the nucleophilic addition and elimination of the second C-F bond, which fully demonstrates the unique reaction law of Fe catalysis. It also provides supplement to the defluorination reaction methodology for Cu, Ni and PD catalysis and provides a reaction methodology strategy of C-F bond cleavage catalyzed by Fe.

This research has been supported by the National Natural Science Foundation and the operating expense for basic scientific researches in colleges and universities allocated by the central government.

Link of the paper: https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.202100049