Benzaldehyde aldolization

Keywords cyclohexanone, benzaldehyde, Aldol condensation, RuC13, a,a -bis-benzylidene cycloalkanone... 

A similar phenomenon has been reported by Sugiyama and coworkers, who found that the vinylogous amide (23) reacts with benzaldehyde to give (24) as the sole product (equation 90). When (23) is treated with two equivalents of sodium amide in ammonia, followed by treatment with benzaldehyde, aldol (25) is formed in 25% yield. Although the authors invoke a dianion in the latter reaction, it is unlikely that one could be formed under the reaction conditions used. Instead, it is likely that deprotonation at the endocyclic a-position is preferred kinetically, and that this leads to the product observed with NaNH2/NH3 (irreversible enolate formation). Reaction of this enolate must be slow, for steric reasons, as witnessed by the low yield in the aldol reaction. Under conditions of enolate equilibration, the more stable extended dienolate is produced. 

Cannizzaro reaction Two molecules of many aldehydes, under the influence of dilute alkalis, will interact, so that one is reduced to the corresponding alcohol, while the other is oxidized to the acid. Benzaldehyde gives benzyl alcohol and benzoic acid. Compare the aldol condensation. 

The synthesis of 3-phenyl-]-(2-pyridyl)-2-propen-]-one (2.4c) via an aldol reaction of 2-acetylpyridine with benzaldehyde has been described in the literature ". O jmpound 2.4a-e have been prepared in high yields, using slightly modified versions of these literature procedures. 

The higjily water-soluble dienophiles 2.4f and2.4g have been synthesised as outlined in Scheme 2.5. Both compounds were prepared from p-(bromomethyl)benzaldehyde (2.8) which was synthesised by reducing p-(bromomethyl)benzonitrile (2.7) with diisobutyl aluminium hydride following a literature procedure2.4f was obtained in two steps by conversion of 2.8 to the corresponding sodium sulfonate (2.9), followed by an aldol reaction with 2-acetylpyridine. In the preparation of 2.4g the sequence of steps had to be reversed Here, the aldol condensation of 2.8 with 2-acetylpyridine was followed by nucleophilic substitution of the bromide of 2.10 by trimethylamine. Attempts to prepare 2.4f from 2.10 by treatment with sodium sulfite failed, due to decomposition of 2.10 under the conditions required for the substitution by sulfite anion. 

Ni(N03)2 6H20, Cu(N03)2 3H20, Zn(N03)2-4H20 and KNOj were of the highest purity available. Substituted 3-phenyl-l-(2-pyridyl)-2-propene-ones (2.4a-e) were prepared by an aldol condensation of the corresponding substituted benzaldehyde with 2-acetylpyridine, following either of two modified... 

As actually carried out the mixed aldol condensation product 1 3 diphenyl 2 propen 1 one has been isolated in 85% yield on treating benzaldehyde with ace tophenone in an aqueous ethanol solution of sodium hydroxide at 15-30°C... 

Aldol additions of benzaldehyde with active methylene groups produce other aldehydes. 

Furthermore, in analogy to the aldol reaction, a-chloro-a,3-unsaturated esters have been observed—likely the result of 3-elimination of water from the intermediate halohydrin. For example, when benzaldehyde is condensed with the enolate of 17, chloride 19 was obtained. ... 

In 1908, while working at University of Heidelberg, Auwers and Muller described the transformation of 4-methyl-2-cumaranone (3) to flavanol 6. Thus aldol condensation of 3 with benzaldehyde gave benzylidene derivative 4, which was brominated to give dibromide 5. Subsequent treatment of 5 with alcoholic KOH then furnished 2-methylflavonol 6. In the following years, Auwers published more extensively on the scope and limitations of this reaction. ... 

Forty years after the initial proposal, Sweet and Fissekis proposed a more detailed pathway involving a carbenium ion species. According to these authors the first step involved an aldol condensation between ethyl acetoacetate (6) and benzaldehyde (5) to deliver the aldol adduct 11. Subsequent dehydration of 11 furnished the key carbenium ion 12 which was in equilibrium with enone 13. Nucleophilic attack of 12 by urea then delivered ureide 14. Intramolecular cyclization produced a hemiaminal which underwent dehydration to afford dihydropyrimidinone 15. These authors demonstrated that the carbenium species was viable through synthesis. After enone 13 was synthesized, it was allowed to react with N-methyl urea to deliver the mono-N-methylated derivative of DHPM 15. 

The mechanism of the cycloaddition reaction of benzaldehyde 2a with Danishefsky s diene 3a catalyzed by aluminum complexes has been investigated theoretically using semi-empirical calculations [14]. It was found that the reaction proceeds as a step-wise cycloaddition reaction with the first step being a nucleophilic-like attack of Danishefsky s diene 2a on the coordinated carbonyl compound leading to an aldol-like intermediate which is stabilized by interaction of the cation with the oxygen atom of the Lewis acid. The next step is the ring-closure step, giving the cycloaddition product. 

A series of chiral boron catalysts prepared from, e.g., N-sulfonyl a-amino acids has also been developed and used in a variety of cycloaddition reactions [18]. Corey et al. have applied the chiral (S)-tryptophan-derived oxazaborolidine-boron catalyst 11 and used it for the conversion of, e.g., benzaldehyde la to the cycloaddition product 3a by reaction with Danishefsky s diene 2a [18h]. This reaction la affords mainly the Mukaiyama aldol product 10, which, after isolation, was converted to 3a by treatment with TFA (Scheme 4.11). It was observed that no cycloaddition product was produced in the initial step, providing evidence for the two-step process. 

Chiral salen chromium and cobalt complexes have been shown by Jacobsen et al. to catalyze an enantioselective cycloaddition reaction of carbonyl compounds with dienes [22]. The cycloaddition reaction of different aldehydes 1 containing aromatic, aliphatic, and conjugated substituents with Danishefsky s diene 2a catalyzed by the chiral salen-chromium(III) complexes 14a,b proceeds in up to 98% yield and with moderate to high ee (Scheme 4.14). It was found that the presence of oven-dried powdered 4 A molecular sieves led to increased yield and enantioselectivity. The lowest ee (62% ee, catalyst 14b) was obtained for hexanal and the highest (93% ee, catalyst 14a) was obtained for cyclohexyl aldehyde. The mechanism of the cycloaddition reaction was investigated in terms of a traditional cycloaddition, or formation of the cycloaddition product via a Mukaiyama aldol-reaction path. In the presence of the chiral salen-chromium(III) catalyst system NMR spectroscopy of the crude reaction mixture of the reaction of benzaldehyde with Danishefsky s diene revealed the exclusive presence of the cycloaddition-pathway product. The Mukaiyama aldol condensation product was prepared independently and subjected to the conditions of the chiral salen-chromium(III)-catalyzed reactions. No detectable cycloaddition product could be observed. These results point towards a [2-i-4]-cydoaddition mechanism. 

The mechanism for the hetero-Diels-Alder reaction of benzaldehyde 9 with the very reactive diene, Danishefsky s diene 10, catalyzed by aluminum complexes has been investigated from a theoretical point of view using semi-empirical calculations [27]. The focus in this investigation was to address the question if the reaction proceeds directly to the hetero-Diels-Alder adduct 11, or if 11 is formed via a Mukaiyama aldol intermediate (Scheme 8.4) (see the chapter dealing with hetero-Diels-Alder reactions of carbonyl compounds). 

Activity is apparently retained when the ring nitrogen is alkylated as in flordipine (42). Aldol condensation of the benzaldehyde 39 with ethyl acetoacetate gives the unsaturated ester 40. The nitrogen containing reaction partner 41 is obtained by condensation of 32 with 2- morpholi-noethylamine. Reaction of 40 with 41 leads to flordipine (42) [12]. 

Pyrimidinopyrazines related to folic acid have been investigated in some detail for their antimeta-bolic and antineoplastic activities. A related compound, which lacks one nitrogen atom, has been described as an antiproliferative agent, indicating it too has an effect on cell replication. Aldol condensation of the benzaldehyde 99 with ethyl acetoacetate gives the cinnamate 100. This is then reduced catalytically to the acetoacetate 101. Reaction of that keto ester with 2,4,6- triami-nopyrimidine gives the product 102 which is subsequently chlorinated (103) and subjected to hydrogenolysls. There is thus formed piritrexim (104) [17]. 

The ketone 2-methyfcycloliexanone, for instance, gives the mixed aldol product on reaction with benzaldehyde. 

The situation can be summarized by saying that a mixed aldol reaction leads to a mixture of products unless one of the partners either has no a hydrogens but is a good electrophilic acceptor (such as benzaldehyde) or is an unusually acidic nucleophilic donor (such as ethyl acetoacetate). 

The aldol reaction is a carbonyl condensation that occurs between two aldehyde or ketone molecules. Aldol reactions are reversible, leading first to a /3-hydroxy aldehyde or ketone and then to an cr,/6-unsaturated product. Mixed aldol condensations between two different aldehydes or ketones generally give a mixture of all four possible products. A mixed reaction can be successful, however, if one of the two partners is an unusually good donor (ethyl aceto-acetate, for instance) or if it can act only as an acceptor (formaldehyde and benzaldehyde, for instance). Intramolecular aldol condensations of 1,4- and 1,5-diketones are also successful and provide a good way to make five-and six-inembered rings. 

When an enolate is forced to take the E configuration, e.g, the enolate derived from cyclohexanone, predominant formation of the anti-aldol might be expected. Surprisingly, early experiments gave more or less stereorandom results in that the reaction with benzaldehyde gave a ratio of. vvtt/ant/ -aldols of 48 521B 23, Contrarily, recent investigations24 reveal a substantial anti selectivity (16 84), which is lowered in a dramatic manner (50 50) by the presence of lithium salts. Thus, the low stereoselectivity in the early experiments may be attributed to impurities of lithium salts or lithium hydroxide. 

Surprisingly, the size of the silyl protecting group significantly influences the stereochemical outcome of aldol additions performed with the lithium enolates of (S )-l-trimethylsiloxy-and (S)-l-f< rt-butyldimethylsiloxy-l-cyclohexyl-2-butanone. Thus, the former reagent attacks benzaldehyde preferably from the Si-face (9 1), which is the opposite topicity to that found in the addition of the corresponding titanium enolates of either ketone ... 

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