Acids to Acid Halides

In a generalized sense, acids are electron pair acceptors. They include both protic (Bronsted) acids and Lewis acids such as AlCb and BF3 that have an electron-deficient central metal atom. Consequently, there is a priori no difference between Bronsted (protic) and Lewis acids. In extending the concept of superacidity to Lewis acid halides, those stronger than anhydrous aluminum chloride (the most commonly used Friedel-Crafts acid) are considered super Lewis acids. These superacidic Lewis acids include such higher-valence fluorides as antimony, arsenic, tantalum, niobium, and bismuth pentafluorides. Superacidity encompasses both very strong Bronsted and Lewis acids and their conjugate acid systems. 

Thiazolecarboxylic acid hydrazides are prepared by the same general methods used to prepare amides, that is, by treating acids, esters, amides, anhydrides, or acid halides with hydrazine or substitued hydrazines. For example, see Scheme 21 (92). The dihydrazides are obtained in the same way (88). With diethyl 2-chloro-4,5-thiazoledicarboxylate this reaction gives the mono hydr azide monoester of 2-hydrazine-4,5-... 

Solid Superacids. Most large-scale petrochemical and chemical industrial processes ate preferably done, whenever possible, over soHd catalysts. SoHd acid systems have been developed with considerably higher acidity than those of acidic oxides. Graphite-intercalated AlCl is an effective sohd Friedel-Crafts catalyst but loses catalytic activity because of partial hydrolysis and leaching of the Lewis acid halide from the graphite. Aluminum chloride can also be complexed to sulfonate polystyrene resins but again the stabiUty of the catalyst is limited. 

Mote stable catalysts ate obtained by using fluorinated graphite or fluorinated alumina as backbones, and Lewis acid halides, such as SbF, TaF, and NbF, which have a relatively low vapor pressure. These Lewis acids ate attached to the fluorinated soHd supports through fluorine bridging. They show high reactivity in Friedel-Crafts type reactions including the isomerization of straight-chain alkanes such as / -hexane. 

Substituted Amides. Monosubstituted and disubstituted amides can be synthesized with or without solvents from fatty acids and aLkylamines. Fatty acids, their esters, and acid halides can be converted to substituted amides by reaction with primary or secondary aLkylamines, arylamines, polyamines, or hydroxyaLkylamines (30). Di- -butylamine reacts with oleic acid (2 1 mole ratio) at 200—230°C and 1380 kPa (200 psi) to produce di-A/-butyloleamide. Entrained water with excess -butylamine is separated for recycling later (31). 

Ethyl alcohol also reacts with acid anhydrides or acid halides to give the corresponding esters. 

In most other reactions the azolecarboxylic acids and their derivatives behave as expected (cf. Scheme 52) (37CB2309), although some acid chlorides can be obtained only as hydrochlorides. Thus imidazolecarboxylic acids show the normal reactions they can be converted into hydrazides, acid halides, amides and esters, and reduced by lithium aluminum hydride to alcohols (70AHC(12)103). Again, thiazole- and isothiazole-carboxylic acid derivatives show the normal range of reactions. 

Properly substituted isoxazolecarboxylic acids can be converted into esters, acid halides, amides and hydrazides, and reduced by lithium aluminum hydride to alcohols. For example, 3-methoxyisoxazole-5-carboxylic acid (212) reacted with thionyl chloride in DMF to give the acid chloride (213) (74ACS(B)636). Ethyl 3-ethyl-5-methylisoxazole-4-carboxylate (214) was reduced with LAH to give 3-ethyl-4-hydroxymethyl-5-methylisoxazole (215) (7308(53)70). 

The second general method is the aluminum halide-catalyzed reaction of acid halides with ethylene to give g-halo ketones which are subsequently converted to ketals. ... 

One-electron oxidation of carboxylate ions generates acyloxy radicals, which undergo decarboxylation. Such electron-transfer reactions can be effected by strong one-electron oxidants, such as Mn(HI), Ag(II), Ce(IV), and Pb(IV) These metal ions are also capable of oxidizing the radical intermediate, so the products are those expected from carbocations. The oxidative decarboxylation by Pb(IV) in the presence of halide salts leads to alkyl halides. For example, oxidation of pentanoic acid with lead tetraacetate in the presence of lithium chloride gives 1-chlorobutane in 71% yield ... 

Perfluoroalkyl or -aryl halides undergo oxidative addition with metal vapors to form nonsolvated fluonnated organometallic halides and this topic has been die subject of a review [289] Pentafluorophenyl halides react with Rieke nickel, cobalt, and iron to give bispentafluorophenylmetal compounds, which can be isolated in good yields as liquid complexes [290] Rieke nickel can also be used to promote the reaction of pentafluorophenyl halides with acid halides [297] (equation 193)... 

PCI5 chlorinates alcohols to alkyl halides and carboxylic acids to the corresponding RCOCl. When heated with NH4CI the phosphonitrilic chlorides are obtained (p. 536). These and other reactions are summarized in the diagram. 

Electrochemical reduction of oxazolinium salts 36 gives the anions 37, which add efficiently to alkyl halides or, in the presence of McsSiCl, to methyl acrylate, methyl vinyl ketone, and acrylonitrile. Simple acid hydrolysis then gives the ketone products 38 and 39, and this method is quite general since the starting salts are readily prepared from carboxylic acids, R C02H (87TL4411). 

The chiral bicyclic imidazolidine 74 is deprotonated at the 2 position by s-BuLi and the resulting anion adds to alkyl halides, acid chlorides, chlorofor-mates, phenyl isocyanate, and aldehydes. The use of this compound as a chiral formyl anion equivalent seems to be limited, however, since the diastereoselectiv-ity in the addition to aldehydes is poor and hydrolysis of the products 75 to give aldehydes also produces cyclohexane-1,2-diamine, necessitating isolation of the aldehyde as its 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazone (96SL1109 98T14255). 

Dihydropyrans 88-90 are deprotonated at the vinylic position adjacent to oxygen by t-BuLi and the resulting anions add readily to alkyl halides, aldehydes, and ketones. Subsequent acid hydrolysis provides the products expected from reaction of an oj-functionalized pentanoyl anion 88 acts as HOCH2(CH2)3CO , 89 as 0CH(CH2)3C0 , and 90 as MeCO(CH2)3CO (77TL4187 81T3997). 

The cyclized analog of meralluride is prepared by a similar synthesis. Thus, condensation of camphoric acid (42) (obtained by oxidation of camphor) with ammonia gives the bicyclic succinimide (44). Reaction with allyl isocyanate followed by ring opening and then reaction with mercuric acetate affords the mercury derivative (45) as the acetate rather than the hydroxide as above. Reaction with sodium chloride converts that acetate to the halide (46). Displacement on mercury with the disodium salt of thioglycollic acid affords the diuretic mercaptomerine (47). ... 

Nickel and nickel alloys generally possess good corrosion resistance to acidic, neutral and alkaline salts, including halides, that are not oxidising in character. Oxidising salts are usually corrosive towards Ni, Ni-Cu and Ni-Mo alloys, but not to Ni-Cr and Ni-Cr-Fe-Mo-Cu alloys unless they contain appreciable quantities of both oxidiser and halide ions, e.g. FeClj, CuClj, NaOCl. Ni-Cr-Mo alloys are among the few metallic materials that are resistant to oxidising halide salts. 

Note that in the S l reaction, which is often carried out under acidic conditions, neutral water can act as a leaving group. This occurs, for example, when an alkyl halide is prepared from a tertiary alcohol by reaction with HBr or HC1 (Section 10.6). The alcohol is first protonated and then spontaneously loses H2O to generate a carbocation, which reacts with halide ion to give the alkyl halide (Figure 11.13). Knowing that an SN1 reaction is involved in the conversion of alcohols to alkyl halides explains why the reaction works well only for tertiary alcohols. Tertiary alcohols react fastest because they give the most stable carbocation intermediates. 

Closely related to the carboxylic acids and nitriles discussed in the previous chapter are the carboxylic acid derivatives, compounds in which an acyl group is bonded to an electronegative atom or substituent that can net as a leaving group in a substitution reaction. Many kinds of acid derivatives are known, but we ll be concerned primarily with four of the more common ones acid halides, acid anhydrides, esters, and amides. Esters and amides are common in both laboratory and biological chemistry, while acid halides and acid anhydrides are used only in the laboratory. Thioesters and acyl phosphates are encountered primarily in biological chemistry. Note the structural similarity between acid anhydrides and acy) phosphates. 

Acid halides are among the most reactive of carboxylic acid derivatives and can be converted into many other kinds of compounds by nucleophilic acyl substitution mechanisms. The halogen can be replaced by -OH to yield an acid, by —OCOR to yield an anhydride, by -OR to yield an ester, or by -NH2 to yield an amide. In addition, the reduction of an acid halide yields a primary alcohol, and reaction with a Grignard reagent yields a tertiary alcohol. Although the reactions we ll be discussing in this section are illustrated only for acid chlorides, similar processes take place with other acid halides. 

Conversion of Acid Halides into Acids Hydrolysis Acid chlorides react with water to yield carboxylic acids. This hydrolysis reaction is a typical nucleophilic acyl substitution process and is initiated by attack of water on the acid chloride carbonyl group. The tetrahedral intermediate undergoes elimination of Cl and loss of H+ fo give the product carboxylic acid plus HC1. 

Conversion of Acid Halides into Esters Alcoholysis Acid chlorides react with alcohols to yield esters in a process analogous to their reaction with water to yield acids. In fact, this reaction is probably the most common method for preparing esters in the laboratory. As with hydrolysis, alcoholysis reactions are usually carried out in the presence of pyridine or NaOH to react with the HC1 formed. 

Conversion of Acid Halides into Amides Aminolysis Acid chlorides react rapidly with ammonia and amines to give amides. As with the acid chloride plus alcohol method for preparing esters, this reaction of acid chlorides with amines is the most commonly used laboratory method for preparing amides. Both monosubstituted and disubstituted amines can be used, but not trisubstituted amines (R3N). 

---