Enantioenriched carboxylic acids from alkyl boronic esters through copper catalyzed CO2 fixation

Objective

CO2PPER aims to explore a comprehensive method for the under-investigated catalytic CO2 fixation in asymmetric carboxylation reactions to produce chiral carboxylic acids. Unlike traditional methods that rely on asymmetric hydrogenation of α,β-unsaturated acids and hydroxycarbonylation of alkenes, catalytic CO2 fixation provides a direct and environmentally preferable alternative. Despite recent efforts in creating new chiral ligands to manage reactivity and selectivity, developing a universal catalytic carboxylation using CO2 remains an unsolved problem. CO2PPER proposes a novel approach by employing stable and easily accessible sterodefined alkylboronic esters in metal-catalyzed carboxylations to prepare a broad range of enantioenriched chiral carboxylic acids. The CO2 insertion will be achieved by the use of abundant and inexpensive copper-catalysts, taking advantage of the lowest energy barrier for CO2 insertion into a M-C bond. This project will significantly contribute to the advancement of the CO2-valorization framework and presents an innovative green methodology for chiral carboxylic acid synthesis.