Alkali-metal-mediated metalation

Mulvey RE (2009) Avant-garde metalating agents structural basis of alkali-metal-mediated metalation. Acc Chem Res 42 743-755... 

Fig. 9 Basis for coining cooperative reactions of this type as alkali-metal-mediated metalations (AMMM)...

The true, all-aromatic system (see 18, below) described by Kime and Norymberski is unusual in the sense that all of the ether linkages bridge aromatic carbons ". Synthesis of 18, therefore, required extensive use of copper mediated coupling reactions. As expected for such reactions, yields were generally low. The aromatics such as 18 were ineffective at binding either alkali metal or ammonium cations ". ... 

Novel electron-transfer reactions mediated by alkali metals complexed with crown ethers as macrocyclic ligands 98ACR55. 

A number of substances have been discovered in the last thirty years with a macrocyclic structure (i.e. with ten or more ring members), polar ring interior and non-polar exterior. These substances form complexes with univalent (sometimes divalent) cations, especially with alkali metal ions, with a stability that is very dependent on the individual ionic sort. They mediate transport of ions through the lipid membranes of cells and cell organelles, whence the origin of the term ion-carrier (ionophore). They ion-specifically uncouple oxidative phosphorylation in mitochondria, which led to their discovery in the 1950s. This property is also connected with their antibiotic action. Furthermore, they produce a membrane potential on both thin lipid and thick membranes. 

Synthesis is typically by alkali metal-mediated coupling of dichlorosilanes or 1,2-dichlorodisilanes, although electrochemical coupling of chlorosilanes and dehydrocoupling of primary and secondary silanes also often lead to oligomeric (as opposed to high polymer) fractions. 

The most common route to polysilane-high polymers is by the Wurtz-type alkali metal-mediated polycondensation of dichlorosilanes. However, , u-dihalooligosi lanes can also be coupled in a similar manner. Wurtz-type polymerization of BrSiMe2SiR2SiMe2Br led to bimodal molecular weight distributions of alternating co-polymers of the type (SiMe2SiR2SiMe2) (R = hexyl or Bu),17 as in Equation (1). 

The currently accepted mechanism of the alkali metal-mediated Wurtz-type condensation of dichlorosilanes is essentially that outlined in COMC II (1995) (chapter Organopolysilanes, p 98) which derived from studies by Gautier and Worsfold,42 and the groups of Matyjaszewski43 and Jones,22,44,45 a modified polymerization scheme of which is included here. The mechanism was deduced from careful observations on the progress of polymerizations in different solvents (such as those which better stabilize anions and those which do not), at different temperatures,44 with additives, and with different alkali metal reductants. Silyl anions, silyl anion radicals,42 and silyl radicals28,46,47 are believed to be involved, as shown in Scheme 3. 

The alkali-metal mediated activation of toluene prompted further work involving more... 

Phospholyl anions are readily generated by R—P cleavage mediated by alkali metal (equation... 

Directed metalation using alkali metal-mediated zincation has been developed for mono- and poly-cyclic aromatic derivatives.100,101... 

Alkali metal transport in biochemistry is a vital process in maintenance of cell membrane potentials of use, for example, in nerve signal transduction and is at the core of some of the early work on artificial ionophores that mimic natural ion carriers such as valinomycin. Ionophore mediated ion transport is much slower than transport through cation and anion ion channel proteins, however. 

Kirch and Lehn have studied selective alkali metal transport through a liquid membrane using [2.2.2], [3.2.2], [3.3.3], and [2.2.C8] (146, 150). Various cryptated alkali metal picrates were transported from an in to an out aqueous phase through a bulk liquid chloroform membrane. While carrier cation pairs which form very stable complexes display efficient extraction of the salt into the organic phase, the relative rates of cation transport were not proportional to extraction efficiency and complex stability (in contrast to antibiotic-mediated transport across a bulk liquid membrane). Thus it is [2.2.Ca] which functions as a specific potassium ion carrier, while [2.2.2] is a specific potassium ion receptor (Table VI). 

Catalytic activity in zeolitic materials is strongly influenced by the type of alkali metal cations, and maximum catalytic activity, e.g, in isomerization reactions, is explained by the formation of an imide species EuNH [305]. Synergetic effects were observed in bimetallic supported Si02 which showed considerable hydrogen uptake during hydrogenation reactions [307]. The formation of Ln-NH2, -NH, -N species seemed to be suppressed in the presence of transition metal powders and precipitation of elemental lanthanides is favored [309]. Lanthanide imides were favored as active species in the Ln/AC-mediated cyclization of ethyne and propyne [310]. 

Alkali-metals are frequently used in heterogeneous catalysis to modify adsorption of diatomic molecules over transition metals through the alteration of relative surface coverages and dissociation probabilities of these molecules.21 Alkali-metals are electropositive promoters for red-ox reactions they are electron donors due to the presence of a weakly bonded s electron, and thus they enhance the chemisorption of electron acceptor adsorbates and weaken chemisorption of electron donor adsorbates.22 The effect of alkali-metal promotion over transition metal surfaces was observed as the facilitation of dissociation of diatomic molecules, originating from alkali mediated electron enrichment of the metal phase and increased basic strength of the surface.23 The increased electron density on the transition metal results in enhanced back-donation of electrons from Pd-3d orbitals to the antibonding jr-molecular orbitals of adsorbed CO, and this effect has been observed as a downward shift in the IR spectra of CO adsorbed on Na-promoted Pd catalysts.24 Alkali-metal-promotion has previously been applied to a number of supported transition metal systems, and it was observed to facilitate the weakening of C-0 and N-0 bonds, upon the chemisorption of these diatomic molecules over alkali-metal promoted surfaces.25,26... 

This chapter is focused on our recent research topics regarding the analysis of complexation reactions at L/L interfaces. We first describe the hydrogen-bond-mediated anion recognition as studied by ion transfer polarography and interfacial tensiometry [22,23], and then alkali metal ion recognition as studied by SHG spectroscopy [24,25]. 

A well established method for the preparation of metalated silanes is the cleavage of Si-Si a-bonds by alkali metals [1]. The reaction of arylsubstituted cyclosilanes yields the corresponding a,(0-dilithiated oligosilanes. Whereas the reaction of cyclopenta- and cyclotetrasilanes with lithium is well known [2, 3], a metal mediated cleavage of a cyclotrisilane was not described up to now. Here we report the reaction of cyclotrisilane 1 with lithium, which affords, depending on the conditions, either 1,3-dilithiotrisilane 2-Li or l,2-dilithiodisilane3-Li. 

Two types of new silicon-branched organosilicon polymers, linear and ladder polysilane structures, were produced from dihalo- and tetrahalodisilane, respectively, via alkali-metal-mediated reactions. Further investigations disclosed that the polymers may he useful as photoresists, semiconductors, ceramic precursors, and composite materials in high-technology fields. 

For this latter reaction, it should be noted that the use of potassium naphthalide leads to further reduction to K2[W(CO)5j thus, the milder reductant Na[Ph2CO] selectively leads to a less reduced complex [61]. M[Ph2CO] salts have instead been used in catalytic amounts as mediators (see Section 4.4). They are prepared by reduction of benzophenone in THF, DME, or ammonia by pieces of alkali metals (Li, Na, K) [68] ... 

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