Alkene oligomerization via metallacycles: Recent advances and mechanistic insights

The transformation of ethylene and alkenes is of high importance for the chemical industry. In this review, we focus on selective alkenes transformation where metallacyclopentane is suspected or demonstrated to be involved in the reaction mechanism. In addition to the alkenes, the “classical” products of ethylene oligomerization, we also cover articles dealing with the synthesis of cyclobutane and butadiene derivatives, through the common metallacycle intermediate. We also present studies that help decipher the precise mechanism of the transformations, i.e. involving synthesis of postulated intermediates, labelling experiments and DFT calculations.