Chiral oxazoline route to enantiomerically pure biphenyls: magnesio and copper mediated asymmetric hetero- and homo-coupling reactions

A series of chiral biphenyls were prepared via asymmetric reactions involving chiral oxazolines. One series of chiral biphenyls was reached by the magnesium mediated coupling of aryl bromides (via their Grignard reagents) with o-methoxyaryl oxazolines. In this case only the o-methoxy group was replaced by the ArMgBr. The initially formed biphenyl adducts were obtained in deʹs as high as 92:8. These adducts could be manipulated to various other chiral biphenyls. Another series of chiral biphenyls were obtained via an asymmetric Ullmann reaction, which was shown to be thermodynamically controlled. The deʹs of this copper mediated process were also in the range of 90% and could be utilized to reach various derivatives. Racemization, thermal stability, and atropisomerization characteristics were also studied.