Alkynes solubility

Aqueous and aqueous-organic biphasic systems would constitute straightforward reaction mixtures for catalyzed hydration of olefins and alkynes. In fact, water is chemically utilized in telomerization of dienes with H2O (179) and hydration of alkynes has also gained synthetic importance (222). However, these reactions are usually run in homogeneous solutions making the olefin or alkyne soluble by using a water-miscible organic cosolvent (alcohols, THF). 

Dimethyl acetylenedicarboxylate (DMAD) (125) is a very special alkyne and undergoes interesting cyclotrimerization and co-cyclization reactions of its own using the poorly soluble polymeric palladacyclopentadiene complex (TCPC) 75 and its diazadiene stabilized complex 123 as precursors of Pd(0) catalysts, Cyclotrimerization of DMAD is catalyzed by 123[60], In addition to the hexa-substituted benzene 126, the cyclooctatetraene derivative 127 was obtained by the co-cyclization of trimethylsilylpropargyl alcohol with an excess of DMAD (125)[6l], Co-cyclization is possible with various alkenes. The naphthalene-tetracarboxylate 129 was obtained by the reaction of methoxyallene (128) with an excess of DMAD using the catalyst 123[62],... 

The skeletal rearrangement of various strained cyclic compounds is carried out with a catalytic amount of soluble complexes of PdCl2. Namely, the rearrangements of bulvalene (67) to bicyclo[4.2.2]deca-2,4,7,9-tetraene (68)[54], cubane (69) to cuneane (70)[55], hexamethyl Dewar benzene (71) to hexa-methylbenzene (72)[56], and 3-oxaquadricyclanes[57] and quadricyclane (73) to norbornadiene[58-60] take place mostly at room temperature. Reaction of iodocubane (74) with a terminal alkyne catalyzed by Pd(0) and CuBr unexpectedly affords an alkynylcyclooctatetraene 75, without giving the desired cubylalkyne 76. Probably the rearrangement is a Pd-catalyzed reaction[61]. 

Alkynes resemble alkanes and aUcenes m their physical properties They share with these other hydrocarbons the properties of low density and low water solubility They are slightly more polar and generally have slightly higher boiling points than the corre spondmg alkanes and alkenes... 

The physical properties (boiling point solubility m water dipole moment) of alkynes resemble those of alkanes and alkenes... 

Cationic phosphine ligands containing guanidiniumphenyl moieties were originally developed in order to make use of their pronounced solubility in water [72, 73]. They were shown to form active catalytic systems in Pd-mediated C-C coupling reactions between aryl iodides and alkynes (Castro-Stephens-Sonogashira reaction) [72, 74] and Rh-catalyzed hydroformylation of olefins in aqueous two-phase systems [75]. 

Physical properties of alkynes [49, p. 251] are essentially similar to those of alkanes and alkenes. These compounds are weakly polar and are insoluble in water, but they are quite soluble in organic solvents of low polarity (e.g., ether, benzene, CCl ). Chemically, alkynes are more reactive than alkanes but behave like alkenes. The triple bond appears to be less reactive than the double bond in some reagents while more reactive in others. In a chemical reaction, the triple bond is usually broken into a double bond, which may eventually split into single bonds. 

Amatore et al. developed an aqueous cross-coupling reaction of terminal alkynes with 1-iodoalkynes using a water-soluble Pd(0) catalyst prepared in situ from Pd(OAc)2 and sulfonated triphenylphosphine P(C6H4 — m-SCENa (TPPTS) without Cu(I) promoter, giving diynes with moderate yields (43-65%)(Eq. 4.22) 42... 

Biphasic systems were found to have a unique effect on the selectivity of the addition of arylboronic acids to alkynes. It was found that the use of [Rh(COD)OH]2 associated with the water-soluble ligand, m-TPPTC, was highly effective for such a reaction in the biphasic water/toluene system (Eq. 4.51).91 The reaction was completely stereo-and regioselective. In addition, the catalyst did not lose any activity... 

Alkyne-nitrile cyclotrimerization is a powerful synthetic methodology for the synthesis of complex heterocyclic aromatic molecules.118 Recently, Fatland et al. developed an aqueous alkyne-nitrile cyclotrimerization of one nitrile with two alkynes for the synthesis of highly functionalized pyridines by a water-soluble cobalt catalyst (Eq. 4.62). The reaction was chemospecific and several different functional groups such as unprotected alcohols, ketones, and amines were compatible with the reaction.119 In addition, photocatalyzed [2+2+2] alkyne or alkyne-nitrile cyclotrimerization in water120 and cyclotrimerization in supercritical H2O110121 have been reported in recent years. 

Precise placement of metal complexing sites within the infrastructure of a cascade molecule is of importance from a variety of perspectives. In the construction of the above noted Micellane family (cf. Sect. 3.1), we reported the construction of dendrimers with four alkyne moieties at sites equidistant from each other in the interior (17, Fig. 8) [60]. These were treated with decaborane (B10H14) to afford 1,2-dicarba-closo-dodecaboranes (o-carboranes) [71]. Rendering boron clusters soluble in water is of interest because of their use in cancer treatment by Boron Neutron Cancer Therapy. First and second generation water-soluble dendrimers containing four and twelve precisely located boron cluster sites, respectively, were synthesized (e.g., 18). These water soluble dendrimers and their precursors were characterized by 13C-, and nB-NMR spectroscopy (Fig. 8). 

Platinum on carbon did almost exactly the same thing but required a temperature of about 100°C to do so. With excess acetylene, only III formed. With tcrt-butylacetylene no II formed, probably because of steric hindrance, but I and III formed readily. 3-Hexyne reacted more slowly, required heat with chloroplatinic acid, and formed exclusively c/s-3-di-chlorosilyl-3-hexene. Trichlorosilane with platinum on carbon also added (57) to 1-alkynes or to phenylacetylene exclusively by cis addition to give only trans adducts. Later works (55) indicate that chloroplatinic acid and other soluble catalysts also give exclusively cis addition with a wide variety of Si—H compounds. 

---