Alkenes, with acids

Another method by which a carbocation can be generated is by protonation of either an alkene or a carbonyl group. Thus, cyclobutylmethyl cations are formed by treatment of a ketone or an alkene with acid the cyclobutylmethyl cations subsequently rearrange to give cyclopentyl cations. 

Gas phase basicities defined by the reaction of alkenes with acids (equation 8) can be used to determine the relative stabilities of the resulting carbenium ions. Tsuno and coworkers found in pulsed ICR gas phase protonation experiments of a-trimethylsilylstyrenes 39 that benzyl cation 40 is exclusively formed. The measured gas phase basicities for 39 are comparable to those of a-alkylstyrenes and they are significantly higher than for styrene18. 

Reaction of an alkene with acid (HA) yields a carbocation intermediate. 

In Section 11.4.1, ionization of the C-Br bond in tertiary halide 64 gives carbocation 66. Carbocations were discussed in Chapter 10, Section 10.2, in connection with the acid-base reaction of an alkene with acids such as H-X (HCl, HBr, etc.). To understand formation of a carbocation in a substitution reaction, remember that the stability of a carbocation is related to the number of substituents attached to the positive carbon. The formation of carbocations from alkenes was described in Chapter 10, Section 10.2, as was the relative stability of carbocations. 

In the preceding section, benzene reacted with cations to form substituted benzene derivatives. The cations of interest include Br+, C1+, the nitronium ion, and sulfur trioxide or sulfuric acid, which react as electrophiles. In principle, benzene may react with any cation, including carbocations, once that cation is formed. Carbocations are generated by several different methods they react with nucleophiles, as described for reactions of alkenes with acids such as HX (Chapter 10, Section 10.2) and for S l reactions (Chapter 11, Section 11.4). If benzene reacts with a carbocation, a new carbon-carbon bond is formed, and electrophilic aromatic substitution will give an arene. The reaction of benzene and its derivatives with carbocations is generically called the Friedel-Crafts reaction, after the work of French chemist Charles Friedel (France 1832-1899) and his American protege, James M. Crafts (1839-1917). The reaction takes two fundamental forms Friedel-Crafts alkylation and Friedel-Crafts acylation. Both variations will be discussed, beginning with the alkylation reaction. 

EtAlCb catalyzes the Friedel-Crafts acylation of alkenes with acid chlorides, the formal [3 + 2] cycloaddition of alkenes with cyclopropane-1,1-dicarboxylates (eq 21), the Friedel-Crafts alkylation of anilines and indoles with ct-aminoacrylate esters, and the formation of allyl sulfoxides from sulfinyl chlorides and alkenes. EtAlCU induces the Beckmann rearrangement of oxime sulfonates. The cationic intermediates can be trapped with enol silyl ethers (eq 22). EtAlC is the preferred catalyst for addition of the cation derived from an a-chloro sulfide to an alkene to give a cation which undergoes a Friedel-Crafts alkylation (eq 23). ... 

Ethyl /m s -2-butenyl sulfone (86) together with some ethyl vinyl sulfone are obtained by the reaction of ethylene and. SO2 in wet benzene using PdCl2. SO2 behaves mechanistically similarly to CO in this reaction[66]. Hydrosulfination of alkenes with SO2 and H2 is catalyzed by the Pd(dppp) complex. The sulfinic acid 87 is a primary product, which reacts further to give the. S-alkyl alkanethiosulfonates 88 as the major product, and 89 and the sulfonic acid 90 as minor products[67]. 

PdCb-CuCb catalyzes the condensation of branched-chain alkenes with formaldehyde to give the l,3-dioxanes 96a and 96b (Prins reaction)[73]. The yields are much higher than in the conventional acid-catalyzed Prins reaction. 

Acid catalyzed hydration converts alkenes to alcohols with regioselectivity according to Markovnikov s rule Frequently however one needs an alcohol having a structure that corresponds to hydration of an alkene with a regioselectivity opposite to that of Markovnikov s rule The conversion of 1 decene to 1 decanol is an example of such a transformation... 

Epoxides are very easy to prepare via the reaction of an alkene with a peroxy acid This process is known as epoxidation... 

Relative Rates of Epoxidation of Some Representative Alkenes with Peroxyacetic Acid... 

Epoxidation of alkenes with peroxy acids is a syn addition to the double bond Substituents that are cis to each other in the alkene remain cis in the epoxide substituents that are trans in the alkene remain trans m the epoxide... 

Alkylphenols containing 3—12-carbon alkyl groups are produced from the corresponding alkenes under acid catalysis. Alkylphenols containing the methyl group were traditionally extracted from coal tar. Today they are produced by the alkylation of phenol with methanol. 

Manufacture and Processing Alkylphenols of commercial importance are generally manufactured by the reaction of an alkene with phenol in the presence of an acid catalyst. The alkenes used vary from single species, such as isobutylene, to compHcated mixtures, such as propylene tetramer (dodecene). The alkene reacts with phenol to produce mono alkylphenols, dialkylphenols, and tri alkylphenols. The mono alkylphenols comprise 85% of all alkylphenol production. 

Acid-Gatalyzed Synthesis. The acid-catalysed reaction of alkenes with hydrogen sulfide to prepare thiols can be accompHshed using a strong acid (sulfuric or phosphoric acid) catalyst. Thiols can also be prepared continuously over a variety of soHd acid catalysts, such as seoHtes, sulfonic acid-containing resin catalysts, or aluminas (22). The continuous process is utilised commercially to manufacture the more important thiols (23,24). The acid-catalysed reaction is commonly classed as a Markownikoff addition. Examples of two important industrial processes are 2-methyl-2-propanethiol and 2-propanethiol, given in equations 1 and 2, respectively. 

Nitrones or aci-nitro esters react with alkenes to give in some cases A/-substituted isoxazolidines and in others 2-isoxazolines. When the intermediate isoxazolidines were observed, a number of procedures transformed them into the 2-isoxazolines. Acrylonitrile and phenyl rzcf-nitrone esters produced an A/-methoxyisoxazolidine. Treatment with acid generated a 2-isoxazole while treatment with base generated an oxazine (Scheme 118) (68ZOR236). When an ethoxycarbonyl nitrone ester was reacted with alkenes, no intermediate isoxazolidine was observed, only A -isoxazolines. Other aci-mtro methyl esters used are shown in Scheme 118 and these generate IV-methoxyisoxazolidines or A -isoxazolines which can be further transformed (72MI41605). 

Nucleophilic opening of oxiranes to give ultimately 1,2-diols is usually effected without isolation of the oxirane oxiranation (epoxidation) of alkenes with unbuffered peroxy-ethanoic acid or hydrogen peroxide in methanoic acid (Section 5.05.4.2.2(/)) tends to give monoesters of 1,2-diols (e.g. 53), which can be hydrolyzed to the diols (Scheme 46). 

The critical intermediate (64) for this route (Scheme 65) can be reached in several ways. The commonest is by the reaction of an alkene with hypohalous acid (Scheme 66) which proceeds with overall retention. 

Substituted peroxybenzoic acids are used for epoxidation of tnfluorovinyl alkenes with attached functional groups [7] (equation 5)... 

Chlorohydnns and 1,2-dichloro denvatives are obtamed by oxidation of alkenes with fert-butyl hypochlorite when the reaction is performed in acetic acid instead of water, chlorohydrm acetate is formed [Ji] (equation 25)... 

Under appropriate conditions 1,3-dioxanes can be obtained in moderate to good yields. Below 70 °C the acid-catalyzed condensation of alkenes with aldehydes yields 1,3-dioxanes as major products, while at higher temperatures the hydrolysis of dioxanes to diols is observed. 

Yet another example of an electrophilic addition is the reaction of alkenes with the hypohalous acids HO—Cl or HO-Br to yield 1,2-halo alcohols, called halohydrins. Halohydrin formation doesn t take place by direct reaction of an alkene with HOBr or HOC1, however. Rather, the addition is done indirectly by reaction of the alkene with either Br2 or Cl2 in the presence of water. 

Water adds to alkenes to yield alcohols, a process called hydration. The reaction takes place on treatment of the alkene with water and a strong acid catalyst (HA) by a mechanism similar to that of HX addition. Thus, protonation of an alkene double bond yields a carbocation intermediate, which reacts with water to yield a protonated alcohol product (ROH2+). Loss of H+ from this protonated alcohol gives the neutral alcohol and regenerates the acid catalyst (Figure 7.2). 

Low -molecular-weight ozonides are explosive and are theretore not isolated. Instead, the ozonide is immediately treated with a reducing agent such as zinc metal in acetic acid to convert it to carbonyl compounds. The net result of the ozonolysis/reduction sequence is that the C=C bond is cleaved and oxygen becomes doubly bonded to each of the original alkene carbons. If an alkene with a letrasubstituted double bond is ozonized, two ketone fragments result if an alkene with a trisubstituted double bond is ozonized, one ketone and one aldehyde result and so on. 

Alcohols can be prepared by hydration of alkenes. Because the direct hydration of alkenes with aqueous acid is generally a poor reaction in the laboratory, two indirect methods are commonly used. Hydroboration/oxiclation yields the product of syn, non-Markovnikov hydration (Section 7.5), whereas... 

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