Hydrogen Bond-Accelerated <i>meta</i>-Selective C–H Borylation of Aromatic Compounds and Expression of Functional Group and Substrate Specificities

Abstract

We found that meta-selective C–H borylation of aromatic compounds was accelerated when using urea moiety-containing bipyridine-type ligands unlike in cases involving a bipyridine-type ligand without the urea moiety. The acceleration was due to the recognition and capture of the aromatic substrates by the urea moiety of the ligand by hydrogen bonding. The acceleration was further enhanced by modifying the electronic and steric properties of the ligand. The functional group and substrate specificities were also observed using the urea moiety-containing ligands.