The aryl propargylic alcohol 1-[2-(thiophen-3-yl)phenyl]prop-2-yn-1-ol (1a) is readily prepared from 2-(thiophen-3-yl)benzaldehyde. In the presence of visible light, treatment of 1a with one-half mole equivalent of [Ru]Cl ([Ru]=Cp(dppe)Ru) (dppe=1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)ethane) and NH4PF6 in O2 affords the naphtha[2,1-b]thiophene-4-carbaldehyde (4a) in high yields. The cyclization reaction of 1a proceeds through the formation of the carbene complex 2a that contains the naphtha[2,1-b]thiophene ring, which is isolated in a 1:1 stoichiometric reaction. The C-C bond formation between the inner carbon of the terminal triple bond and the heterocyclic ring is confirmed by structure determination of 2a using single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. Facile oxygenation of 2a by O2 yields the aldehyde product 4a accompanied by the formation of phosphine oxide of dppe. Oxygen is most likely activated by coordination to the ruthenium center when one PPh2 unit of the dppe ligand dissociates. This dissociated PPh2 unit then reacts with the coordinated oxygen nearby to generate half-oxidized dppe ligand and an unobserved oxo-carbene intermediate. Coupling of the oxo/carbene ligands followed by demetalation then yields 4a. Presumably the resulting complex with the half-oxidized dppe ligand continuously promotes cyclization/oxygenation of 1a to yield the second aldehyde molecule. In alcohol such as MeOH or EtOH, the oxygenation reaction affords a mixture of 4a and the corresponding esters 5a or 5a'. Four other aryl propargylic alcohols 1b-e, which contain thiophen-2-yl, isopropenyl, fur-3-yl, and fur-2-yl, respectively, on the aryl ring are also prepared. Analogous aldehydes 4b-e are similarly prepared from 1b-e, respectively. For oxygenations of 1b, 1d, and 1e in alcohol, mixtures of aldehyde 4, ester 5, and acetal 8 are obtained. The carbene complex 2b obtained from 1b was also characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. The UV/Vis spectra of 2a and 2b consist of absorption bands with a high extinction coefficient. From DFT calculations on 2a and 2b, the visible light is found to populate the LUMO antibonding orbital of mainly Ru=C bonds, thereby weakening the Ru=C bond and promoting the oxygenation/demetalation reactions of 2.

The two aromatic S-enynes HCCCH(OH)(C6H4)SCH2C(R)CH2 (1a, R = Me; 1b, R = H) containing olefinic groups with and without an internal methyl substitutent and the O-enyne HCCCH(OH)CMe2CH2OCH2C(Me)CH2 (1c) also with an internal methyl substituent on the olefinic group but with no aromatic group have been prepared. In the [Ru]Cl-induced ([Ru] = Cp(PPh)3Ru) reactions of 1a,c, the presence of the methyl group promotes cyclization reactions and their tandem cyclizations are further induced by MeOH. The reaction of 1a in CH2Cl2 gives the three products 2a–4a. Complex 2a, with a seven-membered thio ring bonded at Cβ of the vinylidene ligand, is formed via a C–C bond formation between two unsaturated groups in moderate yield. Complex 3a is formed via migration of PPh3 from the metal onto the terminal carbon of the alkynyl group followed by coordination of the S atom. The carbene complex 4a is formed by S addition to the internal carbon of the alkynyl group accompanied by migration of the allylic group from sulfur to the newly formed thiophene ring. Tandem cyclization of 1a in MeOH generates the organic product 8a via 2a. In the reaction, the vinylidene complex 7a, a formal methanol addition product of 2a, is also formed as a side product. Deprotonation of 7a gives the acetylide complex 9a. The reaction of 1c affords the vinylidene complex 2c in CH2Cl2 via a similar cyclization process with no other side product. Deprotonation of 2c followed by allylation gave the disubstituted vinylidene complex 10c. Tandem cyclization of 1c in MeOH also gives the organic product 8c. In the reaction of [Ru]Cl with 1b containing no methyl group in the olefinic part, no C–C bond formation was observed. The reactions of [Ru]NCCH3 + with 1a,b each gave only 4a,b, respectively, with no side product. All of these reaction products are characterized by spectroscopic methods as well as elemental analysis. In addition, the structures of three complexes 5a, 9a, and 10c have been confirmed by X-ray diffraction analysis.

Cyclization of the ether enyne 1 catalyzed by [Ru]NCCH3(+) ([Ru] = Cp(PPh3)2Ru) in CHCl3 generates a diastereomeric mixture of the substituted tetrahydropyran 11. Presumably, formation of an allenylidene complex is followed by a cyclization by nucleophilic addition of the olefinic group to Cγ of the ligand giving a boat-like six-membered ring. The diastereoselectivity is controlled by the 1,3-diaxial interaction. The vinylidene complex 7, a precursor of 11, is obtained from 1 and [Ru]Cl. In a mixture of MeOH/CHCl3, the domino cyclization of 1 further affords 14a, a chromene product catalytically. The second cyclization proceeds via nucleophilic addition of the resulting olefinic unit to Cα of 7. But the ether enyne 3 with a cyclopentyl ring on the olefinic unit undergoes only single cyclization due to steric effect. The propargyl alcohol and the two terminal methyl groups on the olefinic unit shape the cyclization. Thus, similar all-carbon 1,n-enynes (n = 7, 8, 9) 4-6 each with an aromatic linker undergo direct domino cyclization catalyzed by [Ru]NCCH3(+), to give derivatives of tricyclic fluorene, phenanthrene and dibenzo[7]annulene, respectively, with no intermediate observed.

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