Allylmetallic compounds

Allyltin compounds can be prepared by the standard methods (Chapter 4) of the reaction of an allylmetallic compound with a tin halide, or of a stannylmetallic compound with an allyl halide, or of tin metal or a tin(II) compound with an allyl halide. There are, further, some special methods that depend on the presence of the double bond. 

One of the most gentle methods for the generation of reactive allylmetallic reagents was introduced in 1977 by Hiyama and Nozaki1,2,3,33. By the action of two equivalents of chromi-um(II) chloride on allylic halides in tetrahydrofuran at 0°C in the presence of a carbonyl compound, reductive coupling with the formation of a homoallylic alcohol takes place. 

Allyl chlorides are readily deprotonated a to the halide by strong bases to give allyl carbenoids, which insert into organozirconocene chlorides to afford allyl- or pentadienyl-zirco-nocene chlorides (Scheme 3.23). These allylmetallic species are reactive towards carbonyl compounds, and so an efficient three-component coupling results [50]. 

The impetus for the development of gem-bimetallics was initially to discover alkylidene-transfer reagents akin to Tebbe s reagent [14]. Schwartz prepared bimetallic aluminum—zirconocene derivatives by the hydrometallation of various vinyl metallic compounds [15—17]. Knochel has developed zinc—zirconium gem-bimetallics by hydrozircona-tion of vinylzincs and has used them as alkylidene-transfer reagents [18], More recently, other gem-bimetallics have been developed that exhibit different reactivities of the two carbon—metal bonds. Thus, Normant and Marek have reported the allylmetallation of vinyl metals to afford zinc—magnesium and zinc—lithium gem-bimetallics, which react selectively with various electrophiles such as ClSnBu3, H20, etc. [19, and references cited therein]. However, selective and sequential cleavage of the two carbon—metal bonds... 

Allylmetallic reagents The ally] anions obtained by reductive metallation of ally I phenyl sulfides with lithium l-(dimethy amino)naphthalenide (LDMAN, 10, 244) react with a, 3-enals to give mixtures of 1,2-adducts. The regioselectivity can be controlled by the metal counterion. Thus the allyllithium or the allyltitanium compound obtained from either 1 or 2 reacts with crotonaldehyde at the secondary terminus of the allylic system to give mainly the adduct 3. In contrast the allylcerium compound reacts at the primary terminus to form 4 as the major adduct. 

It is reasonable to assume, that the counterion prefers to coordinate to the carbon atom with the highest electron density. Hence, according to this crude picture, donor-substituted allylmetallics are to be regarded as 3-metalated hetero-substituted vinyl compounds, acceptor-substituted ones on the other hand as 1-metalated hetero-substituted allyl compounds. 

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