Solvent-Free and Efficient Synthesis of Silatranes via an Organocatalytic Protocol under Mild Conditions

The organocatalytic approach to the formation of silatranyl cages permitted the design of a solvent-free and efficient protocol for the preparation of various organosilatranes. We discovered that amidine derivatives efficiently catalyze the conversion of trialkoxysilanes into organosilatranes, and their catalytic activity is related to the pK(BH+) values. NMR studies of equimolar reactions of 1,8-diazabicyclo[5.4.0]-undec-7-ene (DBU) and 1,5,7-triazabicyclo[4.4.0]-dec-5-ene (TBD) with selected substrates allowed proposing a reliable scheme for the transesterification process and silatranyl cage formation. In addition, green chemistry metrics for the scaled-up synthesis of vinylsilatrane (3k) were appointed. Finally, a scheme for the industrial production of silatrane derivatives with DBU and solvent regeneration was proposed, supported by a catalyst recycling experiment.