Acyl fluorides reduction

Alkenyl and arylfluorides (F—C=C) are reactive and so one can imagine that the moiety of (F—C=X) (X=0, NR) should also be reactive. Acyl fluorides have greater stability than the corresponding chlorides toward neutral oxygen nucleophiles such as water and methanol, but appear to be equal reactivity toward anionic nucleophiles and amines [ 1 ]. Cyanuric fluoride 2 is a mild reagent for the preparation of acyl fluorides [2]. The protected amino acids can be transformed into the corresponding amino alcohols without racemization by the reduction of acyl fluorides 3 [3]. 

In addition to studying the behavior of benzoyl chloride. Cheek and Horine [72] have examined the reduction of benzoyl fluoride electrolysis of the latter compound affords benzyl benzoate, diphenyl-acetylene, stilbenol benzoate, and some polymers. Another feature of the reduction of benzoyl chloride is the possibility that both acyl radicals and acyl anions are involved as intermediates [71]. 

Typically, oc,0-unsaturated esters, a,0-unsaturated aldehydes and a,0-unsaturated nitriles are poor acceptors for the Lewis acid catalyzed silylallylation procedure, but they are excellent acceptors for the complementary fluoride ion mediated allylation procedure (cf. Volume 4, Chapter 1.2, Section 1.2.2.1.7). Other suitable acceptors include 1,4-quinones,70 a,0-unsaturated acyl cyanides (162),718 silyl ot,0-enoates (163)71b and nitroalkenes (Scheme 26) 72 reduction (titanium(III) trichloride) of the intermediate nitronates arising from nitroalkene allylation affords y,8-enones (166). 

Stereoselective reduction of a-alkyl-3-keto acid derivatives represents an attractive alternative to stereoselective aldol condensation. Complementary methods for pr uction of either diastereoisomer of a-alkyl-3-hydroxy amides from the corresponding a-alkyl-3-keto amides (53) have been developed. Zinc borohydride in ether at -78 C gave the syn isomer (54) with excellent selectivity ( 7 3) in high yield via a chelated transition state. A Felkin transition state with the amide in the perpendicular position accounted for reduction with potassium triethylborohydride in ether at 0 C to give the stereochemi-cally pure anti diastereoisomer (55). The combination of these methods with asymmetric acylation provided an effective solution to the asymmetric aldol problem (Scheme 6). In contrast, the reduction of a-methyl-3-keto esters with zinc borohydride was highly syn selective when the ketone was aromatic or a,3-unsaturated, but less reliable in aliphatic cases. Hydrosilylation also provided complete dia-stereocontrol (Scheme 7). The fluoride-mediated reaction was anti selective ( 8 2) while reduction in trifluoroacetic acid favored production of the syn isomer (>98 2). No loss of optical purity was observed under these mild conditions. 

After insertion of CO, the resulting metal acyl complex could undergo a reductive elimination of RCOX. Alternatively, it may react with a variety of nucleophilic counterparts, which is what makes this chemistry so valuable in organic synthesis. Depending on the reaction media and the conditions, it is possible to synthesize acids, esters, amides, or acid fluorides from the same starting material, as shown in Scheme 2 for aryl-X compounds [16]. 

On the synthetic side, single diastereomers of P-keto phosphine oxides have been generated from intermolecular acylation of phosphine oxides using either chiral esters or chiral phosphine oxides. In most cases, reduction of the ketone products was not affected by the presence of extra chiral centres. Addition of metallated phosphine oxides to proline-derived ketoaminals provides a new route to optically active P-hydroxy phosphine oxides. The P-hydroxy phosphine oxide 97 has been prepared by the caesium fluoride mediated reaction of silyl-substituted phosphine oxide 98 and benzaldehyde." The synthesis of two (E)-(6-hydroxy-2-hexen-l-yl)diphenylphosphine oxides (99) has been reported. The Horner-Wittig reactions of these compounds with various carbonyl compounds... 

---