Alkynes Butyllithium

In the flask was placed a solution of 0.44 mol of butyllithium in about 300 ml of hexane. To this solution were added, with coaling below -20°C, 800, 600 and 400 ml of dry diethyl ether (note 1) in the case of R = CH3, C2H5 and tert.-CuHj or Me3Si, respectively. Subsequently 0.46 mol of the alkyne [in the case of R = CH3, C2H5 a cooled (-30°C) solution in 50 ml of diethyl ether] was added in about 10 min, while keeping the temperature below -20 c. The suspension (in the... 

A -Methylpyrrole oxidatively adds to [Ru(C=C=C=CH2)(PPli3)2(Cp)][PF6] via its C2 center, the product being the allenylidene species 38 [98JCS(D)467]. Alkyne mesomeric form 39 was postulated to make a significant contribution, which explains well the nature of the deprotonated product 40, obtained from 38 and n-butyllithium. 

Alkylation of 1-alkynes with alkyl halides was carefully examined by Chong [11]. Alkynes could be alkylated easily in the absence of HMPA by treatment with n-butyllithium followed by n-alkyl iodide in THF. In the case of bromides, a catalytic amount of tetra(n-butyl)ammonium iodide or sodium iodide should be added (Scheme 2). 

Since cumulenes and alkynes are often easily interconvertible, many syntheses discussed above have allenic counterparts, especially base-catalyzed cyclizations of allenic alcohols.77 And, of course, several of the alkyne-based syntheses may well have allenic intermediates. There are, however, a few syntheses based specifically upon allene chemistry. In an important one, due to Stirling and his collaborators,78 an allenic sulfonium salt reacts with an enolate anion. Scheme 12 sketches the main features yields as high as 86% are recorded. Methoxyallene is easily metallated by butyllithium and so converted into an allenic epoxide that can be isomerized by fe/T-butoxide into a furan (Scheme 13) or an exocyclic equivalent similar to 15 clearly this method is particularly suited to the preparation of 3-methoxyfuran... 

The first investigations in the 1960s [11,12] established the base-induced isomerization of alkyne precursors as the most practical and general route for the synthesis of alkoxy-and aryloxyallenes. In the meantime, a number of monosubstituted allenes 8 bearing an achiral or a chiral group R is smoothly accessible by this efficient procedure (Scheme 8.5) [1, 2,13-19]. Beside the most commonly used base potassium tert-butoxide, other bases, e.g. n-butyllithium, are also applicable for this isomerization. Recently, the yields of alkyne-allene isomerizations could be significantly increased, in particular with aryloxy-substituted allenes, by using microwave irradiation (Eq. 8.1) [20]. 

Cutting and Parsons described the transformation of acetylenic alcohols 314 into allenyl phenyl thioethers 316 by a two-step procedure (Scheme 8.85) [174], Deprotonation of alkynes 314 with n-butyllithium is followed by addition of phenylsulfenyl chloride, forming sulfenyloxy intermediates which subsequently rearrange to allenic sulfoxides 315. Treatment of allenes 315 with methyllithium results in loss of the sulfoxide moiety to form allenyl sulfides 316 in reasonable yields. 

Extension of this reaction to electrophiles other than aldehydes was unsuccessful [22, 23], However, propargylic boronates were found to react with allylic halides and various carbonyl compounds [23], The boronates were prepared by lithiation of a methyl-substituted alkyne with t-butyllithium followed by treatment with a trialkylborane. The propargylic boronate preferentially reacts with the electrophile at the y-position to yield propargylic products (Eq. 9.20). The methodology has also been applied to alanates with comparable results. 

Standard organolithium reagents such as butyllithium, ec-butyllithium or tert-butyllithium deprotonate rapidly, if not instantaneously, the relatively acidic hydrocarbons of the 1,4-diene, diaryhnethane, triarylmethane, fluorene, indene and cyclopentadiene families and all terminal acetylenes (1-alkynes) as well. Butyllithium alone is ineffective toward toluene but its coordination complex with A/ ,A/ ,iV, iV-tetramethylethylenediamine does produce benzyllithium in high yield when heated to 80 To introduce metal into less reactive hydrocarbons one has either to rely on neighboring group-assistance or to employ so-called superbases. 

A first structural characterization of a cyclobutadiene dianion was performed by Boche and coworkers, who generated the dilithium salt of the 1,2-diphenylbenzocyclobutadiene dianion (143) (by deprotonation with n-butyllithium in the presence of TMEDA) (Figure 17) . Nevertheless, the molecular structure of 143 resembles more the structures of dilithiated alkenes, synthesized by reaction of the corresponding alkynes with metallic lithium. In that class of compounds, carbon-carbon bonds, capped by two lithium centres, are the structural motif (see Section II. E). 

The stereospecific construction of the trisubstituted double bond of the side chain at C-1 of carbazomadurins A (253) and B (254) was achieved using Negishi s zirconium-catalyzed carboalumination of alkynes 758 and 763, respectively. Reaction of 5-methyl-l-hexyne (758) with trimethylalane in the presence of zirconocene dichloride, followed by the addition of iodine, afforded the vinyl iodide 759 with the desired E-configuration of the double bond. Halogen-metal exchange with ferf-butyllithium, and reaction of the intermediate vinyllithium compound with tributyltin chloride, provided the vinylstannane 751a (603) (Scheme 5.79). 

Lithiated 1-alkynes can be metallated relatively smoothly in the 3-position, using an extra equivalent of butyllithium. The efficiency of the dimetallation may be at least 90%, as can be concluded from the excellent results of the quenching reaction with Me3SiG [2] ... 

Depending on the synthetic target, the zirconium metallacycle does not need to be isolated, and one pot syntheses can be carried out. Addition of n-butyllithium to a THF slurry of Cp2ZrCl2 at —78 °C in the presence of the relevant alkyne, followed by warming to room temperature, generates zirconacycles. Dropwise addition of an hexane solution of a dichloride derivative of main group elements to this solution leads to a variety of heterocycles. 

The products are useful precursors to 1-alkynes. The l-bromo-1,3-dienes can be converted to alkenyllithiums by tert-butyllithium (2 equiv.) at — 120° in THF/pentane. These products react with aldehydes with retention of olefin geometry. 

Acyliron complexes have found many applications in organic synthesis [40]. Usually they are prepared by acylation of [CpFe(CO)2] with acyl chlorides or mixed anhydrides (Scheme 1.13). This procedure affords alkyl, aryl and a,P-unsaturated acyliron complexes. Alternatively, acyliron complexes can be obtained by treatment of [Fe(C5Me5)(CO)4]+ with organolithium reagents, a,P-Unsaturated acyliron complexes can be obtained by reaction of the same reagent with 2-alkyn-l-ols. Deprotonation of acyliron complexes with butyllithium generates the corresponding enolates, which can be functionalized by reaction with various electrophiles [40]. 

The reaction sequence in steps two and three is known as the Corey-Fuchs method to create an alkyne from an aldehyde 10 Reaction of triphenylphosphane with carbontetrabromide gives phenylphosphane-dibromomethylene. This reagent then transforms aldehyde 19 into the corresponding dibromoalkene 20 thereby extending the chain by one carbon. Reaction of the bromo compound with two equivalents of n-butyllithium in THF at -78 °C results in the rapid formation of the acetylenic lithio derivative which forms the terminal acetylene 21 upon aqueous work-up. 

First, 7 is converted into its dianion 23 by two equivalents of n-butyllithium. Not only the terminal hydrogen of alkyne 7 but also the propargylic one is acidic. 23 then undergoes intramolecular nucleophilic attack of the terminal chlorine. NH4C1 work-up yields the desired cyclopropyl acetylene 25.8... 

The ready thermal and photochemical decomposition of 1,2,3-selenadiazoles resulting in extrusion of nitrogen and selenium or nitrogen only has been exploited widely in synthesis from more than 30 years. Their thermolysis or decomposition with butyllithium gave the alkynes. More recently, thermolysis of 1,2,3-selenadiazoles fused to carbocyclic rings, e.g., 129 was used for synthesis of cycloalkynes such as 130 (Scheme 41) [6, 230-232],... 

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