Theoretical Investigation of Chemoselectivity between C–H Insertion and Amide Insertion in Intramolecular Rhodium-Carbene Reactions

Abstract

C–H insertion and amide insertion reactions using metal-carbene species provide a powerful synthetic method for direct functionalization of kinetically inert or thermodynamically stable chemical bonds. Our group previously developed an amide insertion reaction using a rhodium-dimer complex, constructing an array of nitrogen-bridged heterocycles. Another research group reported C–H insertion reactions using structurally related substrates and rhodium catalysts. Detailed mechanistic studies were not provided, however, and therefore, the origin of the chemoselectivity was ambiguous. Here we describe our theoretical investigation of the chemoselectivity between the amide insertion reaction and C–H functionalization. An energy gap of the identified transition states in the reaction coordinates could support the reported experimental results and the observed chemoselectivity. Moreover, frontier molecular orbital analysis revealed that functionalities adjacent to the metal-carbene species could affect orbital populations and their energy levels, resulting in the construction of a completely distinctive ring system.