Alkynes reaction with carbenes

The vinylcarbene complexes Cr(CX))5 =C(OEt)C=CXR) (X = NMe2, OEt R = alkyl, aryl) react with alkynes R OCH to form various cyclopenta[b]pyrans.30S In a two step process, addition of the alkynes NEt20Chfe u> the l-metalla-l,3-diene W(CX))s =C(OEt)CHsCHHi) results in metallatriene species that cyclise U) fwm cyclopentadiene complexes 40. Chromium Fischer type alkoxyalkenyl carbene complexes react with ketoalkynes to fcxm bicyclic lactones in a number of different processes involving 8 and 10-e cyclizations. Various dienyl carbene complexes whose parent in Crortho-substituted aromatic alcohols through a variation upon the more usual benzannulation reaction involving alkyne cycloaddition with carbene complexes. ... 

Alkylideneaminocarbene complexes 76, which are aza analogs of alkenyl-carbene complexes, upon reaction with alkynes primarily give formal [3+2] cycloadducts analogous to the 1-aminocarbene complexes (Scheme 16) [74,75]. Aumann et al. proposed that this should be considered as a formal 1,3-dipo-... 

The reaction of alkoxyarylcarbene complexes with alkynes mainly affords Dotz benzannulated [3C+2S+1C0] cycloadducts. However, uncommon reaction pathways of some alkoxyarylcarbene complexes in their reaction with alkynes leading to indene derivatives in a formal [3C+2S] cycloaddition process have been reported. For example, the reaction of methoxy(2,6-dimethylphenyl)chromium carbene complex with 1,2-diphenylacetylene at 100 °C gives rise to an unusual indene derivative where a sigmatropic 1,5-methyl shift is observed [60]. Moreover, a related (4-hydroxy-2,6-dimethylphenyl)carbene complex reacts in benzene at 100 °C with 3-hexyne to produce an indene derivative. However, the expected Dotz cycloadduct is obtained when the solvent is changed to acetonitrile [61] (Scheme 19). Also, Dotz et al. have shown that the introduction of an isocyanide ligand into the coordination sphere of the metal induces the preferential formation of indene derivatives [62]. 

Aryl- and alkenylcarbene complexes are known to react with alkynes through a [3C+2S+1C0] cycloaddition reaction to produce benzannulated compounds. This reaction, known as the Dotz reaction , is widely reviewed in Chap. Chromium-Templated Benzannulation Reactions , p. 123 of this book. However, simple alkyl-substituted carbene complexes react with excess of an alkyne (or with diynes) to produce a different benzannulated product which incorporates in its structure two molecules of the alkyne, a carbon monoxide ligand and the carbene carbon [128]. As referred to before, this [2S+2SH-1C+1C0] cycloaddition reaction can be carried out with diyne derivatives, showing these reactions give better yields than the corresponding intermolecular version (Scheme 80). 

An unexpected varying regiochemistry in intramolecular benzannulation has also been observed in the synthesis of cyclophanes. As mentioned above, there are only two possible regiochemical outcomes in the benzannulation reaction, which differ in the direction of alkyne incorporation. / -Tethered vinyl-carbene chromium complexes undergo an intramolecular benzannulation reaction with incorporation of the tethered alkyne with normal regioselectivity to give meta-cyclophanes [28]. 

A transmetalation of the styrylcarbene chromium complex 62 in the presence of stoichiometric amounts of [Ni(cod)2] to give the nickel carbene intermediate 63 was applied to the synthesis of Cr(CO)3-coordinated cycloheptatriene 64 upon reaction with terminal alkynes [57] (Scheme 37). The formation of pen-tacarbonyl(acetonitrile)chromium is expected to facilitate the metal exchange. 

This photodriven benzannulation was used in the synthesis of indolocar-bazoles (Eq. 22) [96] and calphostins (Eq. 23) [97]. The thermal insertion of isonitriles into these same classes of carbenes provided a complementary approach to similar benzannulations [98-100]. Manganese alkoxycarbene complexes underwent both inter- [101] and intramolecular [102] photodriven benzannulation reactions with alkynes (Eqs. 24 and 25). 

The presence of a cyclopropyl moiety in the carbene complexes makes them useful for synthesis. The cyclopropylcarbene complexes 95 undergo a cycloaddition reaction with alkynes to give the cyclopentenones 96 [51]. The reaction course is explained as being metallacyclopentene fragmentation. (Scheme 34)... 

Vinyl Fischer carbenes can be used as three-carbon components in Ni(0)-mediated and Rh(l)-catalyzed [3 + 2 + 21-reactions with alkynes (Schemes 48 and 49)142 and with allenes (Schemes 50 and 51).143 All three of the proposed mechanisms for the [3 + 2 + 2]-cycloadditions involve an initial carbene transfer from chromium to nickel or rhodium (Schemes 49, 52, and 53). As is seen from the products of the two [3 + 2 + 2]-reactions with 1,1-dimethylallene, although the nickel and rhodium carbenes 147G and 147K appear similar, the initial insertion of the allene occurs with opposite regioselectivity. 

An alternative mechanistic scenario for the initial steps of this reaction (associative route) was the subject of a study by TDS [27, 39], It considers the possibility that the cycloaddilion with alkynes takes place initially by direct reaction with the coordinatively saturated chromium carbene complex 9. 

Alkynes tend to be much less reactive than alkenes. For example, 1,2-diphenylethyne produces only 23% of the dichlorocyclopropene from its reaction with dichlorocarbene, compared with 96% of the dichlorocyclopropane obtained from rrans-stilbene under analogous conditions [4]. Conjugated eneynes react preferentially at the C=C bond with dihalocarbenes [18-20, 22, 38] and with dimethylvinylidene carbene [158],... 

However, a crucial difference was seen in analogous reactions with the (tert-butyl)alkynylcarbene complex 184.a, carried out under a pressure of carbon monoxide. A [4 + 2] cycloaddition takes place, but in this case the ene fragment is not the alkyne functionality, but the carbene-alkyne bond. The mechanism presented by Park implies that this is due to the preliminary... 

The intermediate vinylketene complexes can undergo several other types or reaction, depending primarily on the substitution pattern, the metal and the solvent used (Figure 2.27). More than 15 different types of product have been obtained from the reaction of aryl(alkoxy)carbene chromium complexes with alkynes [333,334]. In addition to the formation of indenes [337], some arylcarbene complexes yield cyclobutenones [338], lactones, or furans [91] (e.g. Entry 4, Table 2.19) upon reaction with alkynes. Cyclobutenones can also be obtained by reaction of alkoxy(alkyl)carbene complexes with alkynes [339]. 

In addition to the reaction of vinylcarbene complexes with alkynes, further synthetic procedures have been developed in which Fischer-type carbene complexes are used for the preparation of benzenes. Most of these transformations are likely to be mechanistically related to the Dbtz benzannulation reaction, and can be rationalized as sequences of alkyne-insertions, CO-insertions, and electrocycli-zations. A selection of examples is given in Table 2.18. Entry 4 in Table 2.18 is an example of the Diels-Alder reaction (with inverse electron demand) of an enamine with a pyran-2-ylidene complex (see also Section 2.2.7 and Figure 2.36). In this example the adduct initially formed eliminates both chromium hexacarbonyl ([4 -I- 2] cycloreversion) and pyrrolidine to yield a substituted benzene. 

In most of the reactions of heteroatom-substituted carbene complexes with alkynes the first event is insertion of the alkyne into the carbon-metal double bond. If vinylcarbene complexes undergo insertion reactions with alkynes, (1,3-butadien-l-yl)carbene complexes result (Figure 2.27). 

If ROM-RCM of cycloalkene-yne 123, which has a substituent at the 2-position of cycloalkene, is carried out under ethylene gas, what compound is formed In this reaction, ruthenium carbene XIX would be formed via [2-1-2] cycloaddition of ruthenium methylidene carbene and alkyne as shown in Eq. (6.91). If XIX reacts with an olefin intramolecularly or ethylene, bicyclic compound 124 or triene 125... 

However, difluoromethylation occurs when nucleophiles intercept difluoro-carbene generated under basic conditions, providing a route to difluoromethyl-ethers of phenols [33] and thiophenols [34]. The reaction with phosphite anion leads to the corresponding difluoromethyl phosphonate (see Sect. 2.3.2) while nucleophilic carbanions such as alkynes [35] also undergo formal alkylation, as do malonates [36,37]. An -difluoromethylaziridine was reported in a reaction with a glycine imine [38]. The scope of the established chemistry is summarised in Fig. 1. Bromodifluoromethylation occurs with a similar range of nucleophiles [39,40], and also with carbonyl-stabilised carbanions such as malonates [41,42]. 

Alkynes are usually alkylated under strongly basic conditions. Gregory Fu of MIT recently reported (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 125 13642, 2003) a much milder Pd and Cu mediated coupling, illustrated by the reaction of the terminal alkyne 7 with the alkyl iodide 8 to give 9. Alkyl bromides work equally well. It is exciting that ketones, esters, alkyl chlorides, alkenes, nitriles and acetals are compatible with the procedure. The key to the reaction is the use of the supporting carbene ligand 10. 

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