cis-Dihydroxylation of alkenes with oxone catalyzed by iron complexes of a macrocyclic tetraaza ligand and reaction mechanism by ESI-MS spectrometry and DFT calculations.

[Fe(III)(L-N(4)Me(2))Cl(2)](+) (1, L-N(4)Me(2) = N,N'-dimethyl-2,11-diaza[3.3](2,6)pyridinophane) is an active catalyst for cis-dihydroxylation of various types of alkenes with oxone at room temperature using limiting amounts of alkene substrates. In the presence of 0.7 or 3.5 mol % of 1, reactions of electron-rich alkenes, including cyclooctene, styrenes, and linear alkenes, with oxone (2 equiv) for 5 min resulted in up to >99% substrate conversion and afforded cis-diol products in up to 67% yield, with cis-diol/epoxide molar ratio of up to 16.8:1. For electron-deficient alkenes including α,β-unsaturated esters and α,β-unsaturated ketones, their reactions with oxone (2 equiv) catalyzed by 1 (3.5 mol %) for 5 min afforded cis-diols in up to 99% yield with up to >99% substrate conversion. A large-scale cis-dihydroxylation of methyl cinnamate (9.7 g) with oxone (1 equiv) afforded the cis-diol product (8.4 g) in 84% yield with 85% substrate conversion. After catalysis, the L-N(4)Me(2) ligand released due to demetalation can be reused to react with newly added Fe(ClO(4))(2)·4H(2)O to generate an iron catalyst in situ, which could be used to restart the catalytic alkene cis-dihydroxylation. Mechanistic studies by ESI-MS, isotope labeling studies, and DFT calculations on the 1-catalyzed cis-dihydroxylation of dimethyl fumarate with oxone reveal possible involvement of cis-HO-Fe(V)═O and/or cis-O═Fe(V)═O species in the reaction; the cis-dihydroxylation reactions involving cis-HO-Fe(V)═O and cis-O═Fe(V)═O species both proceed by a concerted but highly asynchronous mechanism, with that involving cis-HO-Fe(V)═O being more favorable due to a smaller activation barrier.