Alkyne anions from dissolving metal reduction

For reduction, relevant data from polarographic and cyclic voltammetric experiments are summarized in Tables 1 and 2, respectively. For the results in Table 1 the variety of solvents and reference electrodes used makes comparisons difficult. It is clear, however, that even with the activation of a phenyl substituent (entries 6,7,9-14) reduction occurs at very cathodic potentials. In this context it is worth noting that in aprotic solvents at ca. — 3 V vs. S.C.E.) it becomes difficult to distinguish between direct electron transfer to the alkyne and the production of the cathode of solvated electrons. Under the latter conditions the indirect electroreductions show many of the characteristics of dissolving metal reductions (see Section II.B). Even at extreme cathodic potentials it is not clear that an electron is added to the triple bond the e.s.r. spectra of the radical anions of dimesitylacetylene and (2,4,6,2, 4, 6 -hexa-r-butyldiphenyl)acetylene have been interpreted in terms of equal distribution of the odd electron in the aromatic rings . 

Benzene was introduced in Chapter 5 (Section 5.10). Chapter 21 will discuss many benzene derivatives, along with the chemical reactions that are characteristic of these compounds. In the context of dissolving metal reductions of aldehydes, ketones, and alkynes, however, one reaction of benzene must be introduced. When benzene (65) is treated with sodium metal in a mixture of liquid ammonia and ethanol, the product is 1,4-cyclohexadiene 66. Note that the nonconjugated diene is formed. The reaction follows a similar mechanism to that presented for alkynes. Initial electron transfer from sodium metal to benzene leads to radical anion 67. Resonance delocalization as shown shordd favor the resonance contributor 67B due to charge separation. 

The mechanism of the Birch reduction is similar to that for dissolving metal reduction of alkynes (p. 452), and starts in the same way, with a transfer of an electron from the metal to one of the empty antibonding orbitals of benzene. The product is a resonance-stabilized radical anion (Fig. 13.67). 

What can we do if we want the tra s-alkene rather than the ds-isomer from alkyne reduction This can be accomplished using a dissolving metal reduction. When an alkali metal such as sodium is added to liquid ammonia, it is ionized to give solvated electrons (these are blue, but that s a story for the physical chemists...). One electron is added to the alkyne to give a radical anion (Figure 11.94). Because electrons repel each other, the orbitals containing the lone pair and the odd electron are on opposite sides of the triple bond. The lone pair is protonated by the solvent then a further electron and proton are added to complete the process. Thus, 4-octyne is cleanly reduced to fraKS-4-octene. 

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