Regioselective Formation of Enol Esters from the Ruthenium-Catalyzed Markovnikov Addition of Carboxylic Acids to Alkynes.

The ruthenium complexes [Ru(CO)2(P(p-C6H4-X)3)2(O2CPh)2] (1a, X = CF3; 1b, X = Cl; 1c, X = H; 1d, X = Me; 1e, X = OMe) were successfully applied in the regioselective Markovnikov addition of carboxylic acids to terminal alkynes, yielding valuable enol esters. Catalyst screening revealed a significant influence of phosphine's electronic nature on activity and selectivity. The highest activity was achieved with catalyst 1a, featuring the most electron-withdrawing phosphine ligand. Selectivity and activity could be further improved by the addition of catalytic amounts of AgOTf. Moreover, excellent selectivities with up to 99% of the Markovnikov product were achieved. The electronic influence of the substrates on the reaction rate was quantified by Hammett plots. By the use of electron-rich alkynes or highly acidic carboxylic acids, the reaction rate could be increased. Hence, the addition of highly acidic pentafluorobenzoic acid to electron-rich 4-methoxyphenylacetylene can even be carried out quantitatively at 25 °C within 4 h. Furthermore, a broad range of simple as well as electronically or sterically challenging substrates could be isolated in good to excellent yields with high regioselectivity and under mild reaction conditions (25-70 °C). The best reported activities and selectivities were obtained for the conversion of aromatic alkynes.