Unlocking geminal fluorohaloalkanes in nucleophilic fluoroalkylation chemistry: generation and trapping of lithiumfluorocarbenoids enabled by flow microreactors

Chem Commun (Camb). 2023 Jan 31;59(10):1373-1376. doi: 10.1039/d2cc06717j.

Abstract

A direct nucleophilic monofluoroalkylation strategy leveraging on lithium fluorocarbenoids has been developed. Flow microreactor technology allows capitalization of the synthetic potential of these scarcely explored short-lived intermediates - namely 1-fluoro-2-phenylethyllithium, 1-fluoro-3-phenylpropyllithium, and 1-fluorononyllithium - generated through lithium/iodine exchange reaction. This robust protocol was employed to prepare new fluorinated products, adopting various classes of electrophiles. The inherent advantages of microreactor technology contribute to rendering this approach a new valuable tool for direct fluoroalkylation chemistry.