(American Chemical Society, 2025-03-18) Martínez Cuezva, Alberto; Berná Cánovas, José; Puigcerver Alarcón, Julio; Juan S. Santiago Dato; Alajarín Cerón, Mateo; Química Orgánica
We report a five-component clipping approach using activated isophthaloyl-derived esters to synthesize an amide-based thiourea rotaxane. This method overcomes acyl chloride limitations with nucleophilic thiourea threads. The steric hindrance of the mechanical bond enables, for the first time, an interlocked thiourea as a hydrogen-bonding phase-transfer organocatalyst in nu-cleophilic fluorinations. This highlights how mechanical bonds expand thiourea catalysis to processes previously incompatible with conventional catalysts.
