Condensation aldol, acetaldehyde

In tile industrial production of higher alcohols (above butyls), aldehydes play the role of an intermediate in a complete process that involves aldol condensation and hydrogenation. In the OXO process, olefins are catalytically converted into aldehydes that contain one more carbon titan the olefin in the feedstock. Aldehydes also serve as starting materials in the synthesis of several amino acids. See also Acetaldehyde Aldol Condensation Benzaldehyde and Furfuraldehyde. 

It should be realized that the nucleophilic enolic intermediate (hydroxy-ethyl-thiamine pyrophosphate) is a form in which much of the coenzyme is found in vivo and can react with other electrophiles such as a molecule of acetaldehyde (aldol condensation) ... 

When a mixture of aniline, hydrochloric acid and acetaldehyde is heated (in the absence of an oxidising agent), a vigorous reaction occurs with the pro duction of quinaldine. In these circumstances, the main reactions are undoubtedly, (i) the acetaldehyde undergoes the aldol condensation, and the... 

With concentrated alkali, a resin is formed from repeated aldol condensations between aldol, crotonaldehyde and acetaldehyde. A similar condensation occurs with acetone (b.p. 56°), but the equilibrium mixture contains only a few per cent, of diacetone alcohol (III), b.p. 166° ... 

Mixed aldol condensations can be effective only if we limit the number of reaction pos sibilities It would not be useful for example to treat a solution of acetaldehyde and propanal with base A mixture of four aldol addition products forms under these condi tions Two of the products are those of self addition... 

The base-catalyzed reaction of acetaldehyde with excess formaldehyde [50-00-0] is the commercial route to pentaerythritol [115-77-5]. The aldol condensation of three moles of formaldehyde with one mole of acetaldehyde is foUowed by a crossed Cannizzaro reaction between pentaerythrose, the intermediate product, and formaldehyde to give pentaerythritol (57). The process proceeds to completion without isolation of the intermediate. Pentaerythrose [3818-32-4] has also been made by condensing acetaldehyde and formaldehyde at 45°C using magnesium oxide as a catalyst (58). The vapor-phase reaction of acetaldehyde and formaldehyde at 475°C over a catalyst composed of lanthanum oxide on siHca gel gives acrolein [107-02-8] (59). 

Reaction of one mole of acetaldehyde and excess phenol in the presence of a mineral acid catalyst gives l,l-bis(p-hydroxyphenyl)ethane [2081-08-5], acid catalysts, acetaldehyde, and three moles or less of phenol yield soluble resins. Hardenable resins are difficult to produce by alkaline condensation of acetaldehyde and phenol because the acetaldehyde tends to undergo aldol condensation and self-resinification (see Phenolic resins). 

It is also possible to carry out the aldol condensation under acidic conditions. The reactive nucleophile is then the enol. The mechanism, as established in detail for acetaldehyde, involves nucleophilic attack of the enol on the protonated aldehyde. 

An alternative route for n-hutanol is through the aldol condensation of acetaldehyde (Chapter 7). 

What is the structure of the enone obtained from aldol condensation of acetaldehyde ... 

When 2-lithio-2-(trimethylsilyl)-l,3-dithiane,9 formed by deprotonation of 9 with an alkyllithium base, is combined with iodide 8, the desired carbon-carbon bond forming reaction takes place smoothly and gives intermediate 7 in 70-80% yield (Scheme 2). Treatment of 7 with lithium diisopropylamide (LDA) results in the formation of a lactam enolate which is subsequently employed in an intermolecular aldol condensation with acetaldehyde (6). The union of intermediates 6 and 7 in this manner provides a 1 1 mixture of diastereomeric trans aldol adducts 16 and 17, epimeric at C-8, in 97 % total yield. Although stereochemical assignments could be made for both aldol isomers, the development of an alternative, more stereoselective route for the synthesis of the desired aldol adduct (16) was pursued. Thus, enolization of /Mactam 7 with LDA, as before, followed by acylation of the lactam enolate carbon atom with A-acetylimidazole, provides intermediate 18 in 82% yield. Alternatively, intermediate 18 could be prepared in 88% yield, through oxidation of the 1 1 mixture of diastereomeric aldol adducts 16 and 17 with trifluoroacetic anhydride (TFAA) in... 

The synthesis of the polyol glycoside subunit 7 commences with an asymmetric aldol condensation between the boron enolate derived from imide 21 and a-(benzyloxy)acetaldehyde (24) to give syn adduct 39 in 87 % yield and in greater than 99 % diastereomeric purity (see Scheme 8a). Treatment of the Weinreb amide,20 derived in one step through transamination of 39, with 2-lithiopropene furnishes enone 23 in an overall yield of 92 %. To accomplish the formation of the syn 1,3-diol, enone 23 is reduced in a chemo- and... 

The raw materials are usually mutually contaminated to about 5 %. Thus, DSC can be ruled out. The compounds are made by aldol condensations and cross Canizzaro reactions between acetaldehyde and formaldehyde. An elegant method of distinguishing between the two raw materials takes advantage of the 10 fold solubility difference between the two in methanol and water. 

The Cannizzaro reaction is by no means confined to aromatic aldehydes. Formaldehyde undergoes the same change, yielding formic acid and methyl alcohol. That the aliphatic aldehydes from acetaldehyde upwards do not undergo the reaction is due to the fact that the aldol condensation (mentioned above), in virtue of its much greater velocity, takes precedence over the Cannizzaro reaction. 

Microorganisms have also been developed to produce alternative products, such as lactic acid [65], propane-1,3-diol [67], 3-hydroxypropionic acid [68], butane-2,3-diol [69] and numerous other intermediates. For instance, bacteria such as the Clostridium acetobutylicum ferment free sugars to C4 oxygenates such as butyric acid or butanol. They form the C4 oxygenates by Aldol condensation of the acetaldehyde intermediates. The Weizmann process exploits this property to ferment starch feedstock anaerobically at 37 °C to produce a mixture of w-butanol, acetone and ethanol in a volume ratio of 70 25 5 [3],... 

The formation mechanisms and the nature of chromophores in PET are still a matter of discussion. Postulated chromophores are polyenaldehydes from the aldol condensation of acetaldehyde [73] and polyenes from polyvinyl esters [69], as well as quinones [74, 75], Goodings [73] has proposed aldol condensation as forming poly conjugated species by subsequent reactions of acetaldehyde molecules (Figure 2.16). 

Polyacetal resins have a repeating unit of -O-CH2-. They are strong, stiff polymers for valves, hoses, and tube connectors. Pentaerythritol finds end-uses in alkyd resins and explosives (pentaerythritol tetranitrate). To appreciate this synthesis, the student should review two condensation reactions, the crossed aldol and the crossed Cannizzaro. Acetaldehyde reacts with 3 mol of formaldehyde in three successive aldol condensations. This product then undergoes a Cannizzaro reaction with formaldehyde. 

Pentaerythritol, used in the production of alkyds, is produced by a crossed Cannizzaro reaction of the aldol condensation product of formaldehyde and acetaldehyde. The by-product formate salt is a major source of formic acid. 

A side reaction occurring with acetaldehyde and higher aldehydes containing a-hydro-gens is aldol condensation [Hashimoto et al., 1976, 1978 Yamamoto et al., 1978], Aldol reaction can be extensive at ambient temperatures and higher but is avoided by polymerization at low temperature. 

The material is prepared by Diels-Alder reaction of 1,3-pentadiene and mesityl oxide and subsequent aldol condensation of the resulting acetyl trimethyl cyclohexene with acetaldehyde [99]. 5-Damascone is used in perfumes to create masculine notes. 

Problem 17.30 Crotonaldehyde (CH3CH==CHCH=0) undergoes an aldol condensation with acetaldehyde to form sorbic aldehyde (CHjCH=CH—CH==CH—CH=0). Explain the reactivity and acidity of the y H. 

Aldol condensation reaction may be either acid or base catalysed. However, base catalysis is more common. The product of this reaction is called an aldol, i.e. aid from aldehyde and ol from alcohol. The product is either a P-hydroxyaldehyde or P-hydroxyketone, depending on the starting material. For example, two acetaldehyde (ethanal) molecules condense together in the presence of an aqueous base (NaOH), to produce 3-hydroxybutanal (a P-hydroxyaldehyde). 

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