Haloalkyl azides—

For the synthesis of amino acids, the reaction of an a-haloalkyl boronic ester 4 with sodium azide and a phase-transfer catalyst in dichloromethane/water requires a large excess of azide in order to form the a-azidoalkyl boronic ester 5 with only 1-2% epimer34. With the exception of R1 = benzyl, where epimerization of 4 is relatively rapid, bromoalkyl boronic esters are preferred. Chloroalkyl boronic esters react so slowly that the azide and dichloromethane may generate hazardously explosive diazidomethane65,66. Chain extension of 5 to 6 proceeds normally. Sodium chlorite, which is known to oxidize aldehydes to carboxylic acids67-69, also oxidizes a-chloroalkyl boronic esters to carboxylic acids34. The azido acid is hydrogenated to the amino acid. 

The following are examples of use of less common azides. Vinyl azides, including /S-styryl azide, gave excellent yields in the tert-butoxide method (see above), and -haloalkyl azides could be used in their place (70JHC361 ... 

While at the University of Colorado, L Abbe and Hassner extended the scope of the Dimroth triazole synthesis to vinyl azides. These substrates could be obtained through technology developed in their lab provided W-vinyl triazoles for the first time. " This report also described p-haloalkyl azides as suitable iV-vinyl triazole precursors following an elimination event. It is unclear whether elimination occurs before or after triazole formation. 

Just like the aryl azides 2, the vinyl azides 11 are more reactive in their cycloadditions with active methylene compounds than are alkyl azides. In 1970, Alfred Hassner et al. developed a general synthetic approach to 1-vinyl-1,2,3-triazoles 12 and 14, (Scheme 4.4) [6] by the cycloaddition of active methylene compounds 10 or 13 with vinyl azides 11 (or their precursors, the P-haloalkyl azides), in the presence of 1 equiv. of an alkoxide (NaOMe). Decarboxylation of the l- dnyl-5-substituted l,2,3-triazole-4-carboxylic acids 14 synthesized from the reaction of ethyl acetoacetate or ethyl benzoylacetate with vinyl and P-haloalkyl azides led to 1-vinyl-5-substituted 1,2,3-triazoles in almost quantitative yield [6]. 

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