Catalytic Hydrodefluorination of C-F Bonds by an Air-Stable P Lewis Acid.

Catalytic hydrodefluorination (HDF) of unactivated fluoroalkanes or CF -substituted aryl species is performed using the P Lewis acids, [(bipy)PPh] (1 ) and [(terpy)PPh] (2 ) under mild conditions (25 or 50 °C). Mechanistic studies indicate that activation of C-F bond by the P center is key. Particularly noteworthy is that the catalyst 2[B(C F ) ] is air-stable and readily accessible from bench-stable, commercially available reagents in one-step and can be used without isolation.