Patent ID: 7598330

Claim:
A method for synthesizing an olefin directly substituted with an electron-withdrawing group and substituted with at least one additional substituent, comprising contacting (a) a first olefinic reactant directly substituted with an electron-withdrawing group with (b) a second olefinic reactant substituted with a different substituent in the presence of (c) a catalyst composed of a Group 8 transition metal alkylidene complex under conditions and for a time period effective to allow cross-metathesis to occur, wherein the catalyst contains two anionic ligands, a carbene ligand, and one or two electron-donating heterocyclic ligands, and wherein the carbene ligand is different from the one or two electron-donating heterocyclic ligands, and wherein the transition metal alkylidene complex has the structure of formula (VI) wherein: M is the Group 8 transition metal; n is zero or 1; X 1 and X 2 are the anionic ligands; L 2 and L 3 are the electron-donating heterocyclic ligands, or may be taken together to form a single bidentate electron-donating heterocyclic ligand, provided that L 2 and L 3 are selected from nitrogen-containing heterocycles, sulfur-containing heterocycles, and oxygen-containing heterocycles; R 1 and R 2 are independently selected from hydrogen, hydrocarbyl, substituted hydrocarbyl, heteroatom-containing hydrocarbyl, substituted heteroatom-containing hydrocarbyl, and functional groups, or may be taken together to form a vinylidene moiety; X and Y are heteroatoms selected from N, O, S, and P; p is zero when X is O or S, and p is 1 when X is N or P; q is zero when Y is O or S, and q is 1 when Y is N or P; Q 1 , Q 2 , Q 3 , and Q 4 are independently selected from hydrocarbylene, substituted hydrocarbylene, heteroatom-containing hydrocarbylene, substituted heteroatom-containing hydrocarbylene, and —(CO)—, and further wherein two or more substituents on adjacent atoms within Q may be linked to form an additional cyclic group; w, x, y, and z are independently zero or 1; and R 3 , R 3A , R 4 , and R 4A are independently selected from hydrogen, hydrocarbyl, substituted hydrocarbyl, heteroatom-containing hydrocarbyl, and substituted heteroatom-containing hydrocarbyl, wherein any two or more of X 1 , X 2 , L 2 , L 3 , R 1 , and R 2 can be taken together to form a cyclic group, and further wherein any one or more of X 1 , X 2 , L 2 , L 3 , R 1 , and R 2 may be attached to a support.