Retro-Mukaiyama Aldol reaction-driven silicon catalysis

Abstract

The use of silicon reagent as catalyst has long been an attractive yet challenging goal due to the difficulty of silicon catalyst regeneration. Herein, we report a novel silicon-catalyzed formal hydroformylation of alkynes with aldehydes to access α,β-unsaturated ketones with high efficiency under mild conditions. The success of this method relies on the innovative of retro-Mukaiyama aldol reaction (RMAR)-driven silyl transfer strategy, which enables efficient regeneration of silicon catalyst. Preliminary mechanistic studies reveal the evolution of the key silicon catalysts during this transformation. This protocol provides valuable insights for the design of new chemical transformations based on silicon catalysis.