1.4- Benzoquinones synthesis

During the development of a Pd-catalyzed procedure for benzoquinone synthesis, the formation of y-alkylidenebutenolides was unexpectedly observed, when Pd(OAc)2-PPh3 was used as a catalyst in conjunction with an excess of NEts (Scheme 2). In sharp contrast, the use of 5 mol % of phosphine-free Pd(dba>2 and 1 equiv of NEts produced the desired benzoquinone in 93% yield. The lactone formation must have taken place via base-induced trapping of the acylpalladium intermediate with an essentially 1 1 mixture of in situ generated E- and Z-enolates (Scheme 2). 

Seheme 8.72 Water-promoted CDC reaction between indoles and benzoquinones synthesis of mono- and bis(indolyl)-l,4-... 

Bouzbouz, S. and Kirschleger, B. (1994) Total synthesis of 2-tetraprenylbenzoquinol and-benzoquinone. Synthesis, 714-718. 

Cinnamyl—sesamol ethers, eg (35), are useful as insect chemosterilants (111). 3,4-Methylenedioxyphenyl-3-halo-2-propynyl ethers (36, X = halogen) are synergists for carbamate insecticides (112). HaloaLkyl or haloalkenyl ethers, eg (37), show acaricidal and insect juvenile hormone activity (113). The first total synthesis of gibbereUic acid was from 2-methoxy-6-aLkoxyethyl-l,4-benzoquinone, a derivative of hydroxyhydroquinone (114). 

Synthesis by oxidation remains the first choice for commercial and laboratory preparation of quinones the starting material (1) provided the generic name quinone. This simple, descriptive nomenclature has been abandoned by Chemicaly hstracts, but remains widely used (2). The systematic name for (2) is 2,5-cyclohexadiene-l,4-dione. Several examples of quinone synonyms are given in Table 1. Common names are used in this article. 1,2-Benzoquinone (3,5-cydohexadiene-l,2-dione) (3) is also prepared by oxidation, often with freshly prepared silver oxide (3). Compounds related to (3) must be prepared using mild conditions because of their great sensitivity to both electrophiles and nucleophiles (4,5). 

The more traditional methods of phenazine synthesis falling into the type A synthesis are altogether less satisfactory than the application of the Beirut reaction. Traditionally, Ris prepared phenazine in low yield by heating o-phenylenediamine and catechol in a sealed tube at 200 °C (1886CB2206) however, the method appears to be unsatisfactory at best and gives, in addition to phenazine, 5,10-dihydrophenazine in varying amounts (Scheme 53). Several variants of this procedure exist o-benzoquinone has been used in condensation with 0-phenylenediamine and yields as high as 35% have been reported, and 1,2,3,4-tetrahydrophenazine has been prepared by condensation of o-phenylenediamine with cyclohexane- 1,2-dione. 

Oxidation of thiophene with peracid under carefully controlled conditions gives a mixture of thiophene sulfoxide and 2-hydroxythiophene sulfoxide. These compounds are trapped by addition to benzoquinone to give ultimately naphthoquinone (225) and its 5-hydroxy derivative (226) (76ACS(B)353). The further oxidation of the sulfoxide yields the sulfone, which may function as a diene or dienophile in the Diels-Alder reaction (Scheme 88). An azulene synthesis involves the addition of 6-(A,A-dimethylamino)fulvene (227) to a thiophene sulfone (77TL639, 77JA4199). 

Concern for the conservation of energy and materials maintains high interest in catalytic and electrochemistry. Oxygen in the presence of metal catalysts is used in CUPROUS ION-CATALYZED OXIDATIVE CLEAVAGE OF AROMATIC o-DIAMINES BY OXYGEN (E,Z)-2,4-HEXADIENEDINITRILE and OXIDATION WITH BIS(SALI-CYLIDENE)ETHYLENEDIIMINOCOBALT(II) (SALCOMINE) 2,6-DI-important industrial method, is accomplished in a convenient lab-scale process in ALDEHYDES FROM OLEFINS CYCLOHEXANE-CARBOXALDEHYDE. An effective and useful electrochemical synthesis is illustrated in the procedure 3,3,6,6-TETRAMETHOXY-1,4-CYCLOHEX ADIENE. ... 

The reaction investigated by Diels and Alder in 1928 was not new, examples had been known for several years [6]. Early work on the dimerization of tetra-chloropentadienone was conducted by Zincke in 1893 and 1897. In 1906, Albrecht described the product of addition of p-benzoquinone to one or two molecules of cyclopentadiene. Albrecht assigned erroneous formulas to these addition products, but they were later shown to be typical products of the diene synthesis by Diels and Alder. Ruler and Josephson reported the addition products formed by iso-prene and 1,4-benzoquinone in 1920. This research laid the ground work for Diels and Alder. 

Treatment of -benzoquinone with 1-pyrrolidinylamine provides a convenient synthesis of the immunoregulator and antibacterial agent, azarole (11)... 

In the total synthesis of the protein kinase C inhibitors calphostins 146, the orf/zo-substituted intermediates, which are either obtained from photolysis or from reaction of the dienyl carbene complex 144 with tert-butyl isocyanide, were oxidised to yield the 1,2-benzoquinone 145 as a common product [81] (Scheme 61). 

Wefero-Dlels-Alder reactions of 3,5-di-fe/-f-butyl-o-benzoquinone with acyclic dienes novel synthesis of 1,4-benzodioxanes [135]... 

An interesting example of accelerating a reaction when high pressure is applied is the synthesis of a series of highly functionalized 4a,5,8,8a-tetrahy-dro-l,4-naphthalenediones 10 by cycloaddition of p-benzoquinone (8) with a variety of electron-poor dienic esters 9 at room temperature (Equation 5.2) reported by Dauben and Baker [6]. Using conventional methods, these heat-sensitive cycloadducts are difficult to synthesize free of the isomeric hydroquin-ones. When the reactions were carried out under thermal conditions, the primary cycloadducts were mostly converted into the corresponding hydroqui-nones. 

Figure 6.62 Chemoenzymatic synthesis of natural products from the p-benzoquinone-cyclopentadiene adduct.

Other than energy considerations, on which there is little comparative data, the most important green role for photochemistry is in improving atom economy. Although only a preliminary research result, an excellent example of this is the avoidance of the need for stoichiometric amounts of Lewis acid catalysts in the synthesis of some acylated aromatic compounds. Benzoquinone can be reacted with an aldehyde under a sunlamp to yield an acylhydroquinone in up to 88% yield. The alternative procedure would involve reaction of an acyl chloride with hydroquinone and a... 

Similarly, 2,3,5-trimethyl-1,4-hydroquinone (TMHQ), a key intermediate in the synthesis of vitamin E, is produced via oxidation of 2,3,6-trimethylphenol to the corresponding benzoquinone. Originally this was performed by reaction with chlorine followed by hydrolysis, but this process has now been superseded by oxidation with O2 in the presence of a Cu2Cl2/LiCl catalyst (see Fig. 2.20) (Mercier and Chabardes, 1994). Alternatively, this oxidation can also be cataly.sed by a heteropolyanion (Kozhevnikov, 1995). 

Blair, LA., Boobis, A.R., Davies, D.J. and Cresp, T.M. (1980). Paracetamol oxidation, synthesis and reactivity of N-acetyl-/>-benzoquinone imine. Tetrahedron Lett. 21, 4947-4950. 

Lin, A. J. Shansky, C. W. Sartorelli, A. C. Potential bioreductive alkylating agents. 3. Synthesis and antineoplastic activity of acetoxymethyl and corresponding ethyl carbamate derivatives of benzoquinones. J. Med. Chem. 1974, 17, 558-561. 

The asymmetric reduction of the benzoxathiin is very appealing because of its simplicity (Scheme 5.3). It was envisioned that intermediate 16 could be prepared from thiol-phenol 7 and bro moke tone 17. Scheme 5.8 summarized the synthesis for 16. The l,3-benzoxathiol-2-one 35 was prepared from 1,4-benzoquinone and thiourea following a literature procedure with minor modifications. Benzylation of 35 with benzyl bromide in the presence of KI gave benzyl ether 36 as a crystalline solid. It was observed that the benzylation gave better results when the reaction was run under anaerobic conditions. Hydrolysis of thiocarbonate 36 gave free thiophenol 7 which was used directly in the next reaction. 

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