Alkynes, carbonylation

The considerable synthetic utility of vinylsilanes (1) is governed by the availability of suitable stereoselective routes. Most existing methodologies start from either alkynes, carbonyl compounds or vinyl halides. 

Scheme 10 Plausible catalytic mechanism for alkyne-carbonyl coupling as supported by the effect of chiral Bronsted acid catalyst and deuterium-labeling...

Under the conditions of iridium-catalyzed hydrogenation, alkyne-carbonyl and alkyne-imine reductive coupling occurs in the absence of stoichiometric byproducts. For example, iridium-catalyzed hydrogenation of nonconjugated alkynes in the presence of ot-ketoesters delivers the corresponding a-hydroxy esters in... 

Several routes to pyran-2-ones involve the use of alkynic carbonyl compounds as the four-atom component in type (i) syntheses (Scheme 85). 

Rhodium(II) acetate catalyzes C—H insertion, olefin addition, heteroatom-H insertion, and ylide formation of a-diazocarbonyls via a rhodium carbenoid species (144—147). Intramolecular cyclopentane formation via C—H insertion occurs with retention of stereochemistry (143). Chiral rhodium (TT) carboxamides catalyze enantioselective cyclopropanation and intramolecular C—N insertions of CC-diazoketones (148). Other reactions catalyzed by rhodium complexes include double-bond migration (140), hydrogenation of aromatic aldehydes and ketones to hydrocarbons (150), homologation of esters (151), carbonylation of formaldehyde (152) and amines (140), reductive carbonylation of dimethyl ether or methyl acetate to 1,1-diacetoxy ethane (153), decarbonylation of aldehydes (140), water gas shift reaction (69,154), C—C skeletal rearrangements (132,140), oxidation of olefins to ketones (155) and aldehydes (156), and oxidation of substituted anthracenes to anthraquinones (157). Rhodium-catalyzed hydrosilation of olefins, alkynes, carbonyls, alcohols, and imines is facile and may also be accomplished enantioselectively (140). Rhodium complexes are moderately active alkene and alkyne polymerization catalysts (140). In some cases polymer-supported versions of homogeneous rhodium catalysts have improved activity, compared to their homogenous counterparts. This is the case for the conversion of alkenes direcdy to alcohols under oxo conditions by rhodium—amine polymer catalysts... 

Iodosobenzene bistrifluoroacetate is a versatile mild oxidant that has been used to oxidize a broad range of organic compounds, such as alkenes, alkynes, carbonyl compounds, and alcohols Its application in organic synthesis has been summarized m several recent reviews devoted to polyvalent iodine compounds [63, 64, 65]... 

This reaction has been used to prepare many a-methylene lactone derivatives.537 The above alkyne carbonylations were all catalyzed by phosphorus ligand-containing complexes. Some phosphorus-free catalysts for these reactions are also known, such as PdCl2 in presence of thiourea.538 This catalyst system also effects ring closure of 1,6-diynes (equation 131).539... 

Reduction of multiple bonds with samarium diiodide has been reviewed. Chemo-and stereo-selective reduction of various compounds such as conjugated alkenes, c/,/3-unsaturated carboxylic acids, activated alkynes, carbonyl, azides, nitriles, and nitro compounds, under mild conditions, has been discussed. Recent developments in the use of samarium metal in this field have also been discussed.381... 

While platinum and rhodium are predominantly used as efficient catalysts in the hydrosilylation and cobalt group complexes are used in the reactions of silicon compounds with carbon monooxide, in the last couple of years the chemistry of ruthenium complexes has progressed significantly and plays a crucial role in catalysis of these types of processes (e.g., dehydrogenative silylation, hydrosilylation and silylformylation of alkynes, carbonylation and carbocyclisation of silicon substrates). 

Although nickel i the prefer red metal for alkyne carbonylation, catalysts based on cobalt, rhodium, iron, ruthenium, and palladium are preferred for the carbonylation of alkenes, The common intermediate is an acyl-metal species formed by the ligand migration sequence... 

Many new carbonylic complexes have been obtained from the interaction of alkyne carbonylic complexes of cobalt and iron. Lactonyl complexes form at 70°C under CO pressure of 200 x 10 Nm" (152 x 10 Torr) from hexacarbonylcobalt complexes with alkynes ... 

Unsaturated lactones lacking substitution at C-4 are the simi est ones available via this general type of cycloaddition. Several syntheses of these lactones are of practical value, including two Pd-based meth-ods. However, the considerable utility of metal carbonyl anions in lactone synthesis is illustrated by a rhodium carbonyl anion catalyst system which gives very high yields upon reaction with a variety of internal alkynes under weakly basic aqueous conditions, essentially water-gas shift conditions. These conditions were established to maximize chemoselectivity with respect to other possible alkyne carbonylation products. Regioselectivity is modest in this process, but was not examined systematic ly (equation 13). ... 

In an imaginative construction of the angular triquinane ( )-hirsutene (158), Oppolzer and Robyr reported the carbonylative closure of allylic carbonate 155 to yield bicyclooctanes 156 and 157 (Scheme 6-27) [57]. In this multistep transformation, a alJylpalladium intermediate arising from the allylic carbonate 155 undergoes intramolecular Heck insertion of the pendant alkyne. Carbonylation of the resulting vinylpalladium intermediate, another Heck cyclization, and a second carbonylation then provide a mixture of acids, which after esterification yield esters 156 and 157 in good yield. 

In each of the cases you have met so far, we have used a functional group present in the molecule to help us to disconnect the C-C bond using a 1,2 C-C disconnection. You can look for 1,2 C-C disconnections in alkynes, carbonyl compounds, and alkylated aromatic rings. And, if the target isn t a carbonyl compound, consider what would be possible if functional groups such as hydroxyl groups were converted to carbonyl groups (just as we did with belfosdil). 

In recent years, attention has been focused on alkyne carbonylation catalysts based on the metals nickel, palladium, and platinum, modified with a variety of tertiary (bi)phosphines [5]. TTie main goal has been to develop chemo- and regio-selective carbonylation catalysts for application to higher alkyne substrates for the synthesis of certain fine chemicals. Many of these catalysts do allow the carbonylation to proceed under milder conditions than those applied in the catalytic Reppe process, and some of these catalysts do provide the branched regioisomer product from higher alkynes with good selectivity. However, in all cases reaction rates are very low, i.e., below 100 (and in most cases even below 10) mol/mol metal per h, as are the product yields in mol/mol metal (< 100). These catalyst productivities are far too low for large-scale industrial application in the production of commodity-type products, such as (meth)acrylates. 

The discovery of the above-mentioned class of highly efficient alkyne carbonylation catalysts originated from a general study of reactions homogeneously catalyzed by cationic metal complexes [6, 8, 9], e. g., the methoxycarbonylation of propyne (eq. (2)). The catalysts applied were cationic palladium phosphine systems prepared in situ from three components (1) palladium acetate, (2) an excess (10-40-fold on Pd) of a (mono)phosphine ligand(L) and (3) an acid (HX) [8]. Methanol was used as both reactant and solvent, but many other solvents can also be used, such as A-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) or product MMA. 

For an extensive earlier review on alkyne carbonylation until 1980, see A. Mullen, in New Syntheses with Carbon Monoxide (Ed. J. Falbe), Springer, Berlin, 1980, Chapter 3. 

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