Biacetyl reactions

Direct oxidation yields biacetyl (2,3-butanedione), a flavorant, or methyl ethyl ketone peroxide, an initiator used in polyester production. Ma.nufa.cture. MEK is predominandy produced by the dehydrogenation of 2-butanol. The reaction mechanism (11—13) and reaction equihbtium (14) have been reported, and the process is in many ways analogous to the production of acetone (qv) from isopropyl alcohol. 

Biacetyl is produced by the dehydrogenation of 2,3-butanediol with a copper catalyst (290,291). Prior to the availabiUty of 2,3-butanediol, biacetyl was prepared by the nitrosation of methyl ethyl ketone and the hydrolysis of the resultant oxime. Other commercial routes include passing vinylacetylene into a solution of mercuric sulfate in sulfuric acid and decomposing the insoluble product with dilute hydrochloric acid (292), by the reaction of acetal with formaldehyde (293), by the acid-cataly2ed condensation of 1-hydroxyacetone with formaldehyde (294), and by fermentation of lactic acid bacterium (295—297). Acetoin [513-86-0] (3-hydroxy-2-butanone) is also coproduced in lactic acid fermentation. 

Bravo et al. studied the reaction of various ylides with monooximes of biacetyl and benzil. Dimethylsulfonium methylide and triphenylarsonium methylide gave 2-isoxazolin-5-ol and isoxazoles, with the former being the major product. Triphenylphosphonium methylide and dimethyloxosulfonium methylide gave open-chain products (Scheme 135) (70TL3223, 72G395). The cycloaddition of benzonitrile oxide to enolic compounds produced 5-ethers which could be cleaved or dehydrated (Scheme 136) (70CJC467, 72NKK1452). 

In addition to thiodiglycolic acid esters, the use of bis(cyanomethyl)sulfide in the Hinsberg reaction has facilitated the preparation of 5-cyano-thiophene-2-carboxamides. Thus, the condensation of biacetyl with bis(cyanomethyl)sulfide resulted in the efficient preparation of 10 (94% yield). 

The reaction of diketosulfides with 1,2-dicarbonyl compounds other than glyoxal is often not efficient for the direct preparation of thiophenes. For example, the reaction of diketothiophene 24 and benzil or biacetyl reportedly gave only glycols as products. The elimination of water from the P-hydroxy ketones was not as efficient as in the case of the glyoxal series. Fortunately, the mixture of diastereomers of compounds 25 and 26 could be converted to their corresponding thiophenes by an additional dehydration step with thionyl chloride and pyridine. 

Mefenidil (78) is a cerebral vasodilator which may be of value in treating geriatric cerebral circulatory problems. It can be synthesized by reacting benzamidine (76) with biacetyl to produce the highly reactive methylene benzimidazole adduct 77. Reaction of the latter with sodium cyanide completes the synthesis 1,26]. 

Ir(cod)Cl]2 reacts with Q-diimines LL (derived from glyoxal and biacetyl) to yield cationic [Ir(cod)LL]+.523 If the reaction is carried out in the presence of SnCl2, then the pentacoordinate Ir(SnCl3)(cod)LL species results. The compounds are active catalysts in the homogeneous hydrogen transfer from isopropanol to cyclohexanone or to acetophenone followed by hydrogenation... 

Other template cyclizations. In another Schiff-base template reaction, 1,3-diaminopropane monohydrochloride was reacted with biacetyl in methanol in the presence of Ni(n) to yield the nickel complex of the corresponding cyclic tetraimine - see [2.16] (Jackels et al., 1972). The success of the procedure illustrated is quite dependent on the reaction conditions employed. Attempts to isolate the metal-free macrocycle were unsuccessful - this once again emphasizes the stabilizing role of the metal... 

Photolysis of dicyclopentadienyltin results in formation of the Cp- radical (again detected by ESR), along with the precipitation of some unidentified yellow solid54. In contrast, photolysis of dicyclopentadienyllead produces no Cp-, unless di-f-butyl peroxide or biacetyl are added to the reaction mixture. The trimethylstannylcyclopentadienyl radical was produced by photolysis of bis(trimethylstannyl)cyclopentadiene (reaction 35), and was detected using ESR spectroscopy57. 

The reaction of the biacetyl-trimethyl phosphite adduct (65) with acyl isocyanates has been extended to the isocyanates ROCONCO and PhCS-NCO.46 With the thiazolin-4,5-diones (66), (65) gave the thiazol-4-ones (67). 

Investigations have also examined the photochemical outcome of the inclusion of other aromatic substituents onto the norbornadienes. Examples of this are the direct and sensitized irradiation of the naphthyl-substituted derivatives 249 that brings about cyclization to 250. Sensitization of the cyclization with ketones such as benzophenone leads to a much cleaner reaction. Biacetyl has also been used as the sensitizer130,131. Cyclization also occurs with the norbornadiene 251132. 

The reactivity of stable germaphosphenes has been previously investigated and reviewed.3,4,7 The chemical behavior of Mes2Ge = PAr 155 toward orthoquinones (tetrachloro-o-benzoquinone, 3,5-di-terr-butyl-o-benzoqui-none, and 1,2-naphthoquinone) and ce-diketones (benzil and biacetyl) has been examined. The reaction with o-quinones involved probably radical intermediates, and in each case only the less encumbered isomer of the corresponding [2 + 4] cycloadduct 156 was formed. Benzil led in a very similar manner to a l,4,2,3-dioxagermaphosphin-5-ene 157, whereas, as was observed with acetone, an ene-reaction occurred with biacetyl to afford 158138 (Scheme 29). 

Photolytic. Glyoxal, methylglyoxal, and biacetyl were produced from the photooxidation of 1,2,3-trimethylbenzene by OH radicals in air at 25 °C (Tuazon et al., 1986a). The rate constant for the reaction of 1,2,3-trimethylbenzene and OH radicals at room temperature was 1.53 x 10 " cmVmolecule-sec (Hansen et al., 1975). A rate constant of 1.49 x 10 L/molecule-sec was reported for the reaction of 1,2,3-trimethylbenzene with OH radicals in the gas phase (Darnall et al., 1976). Similarly, a room temperature rate constant of 3.16 x 10 " cm /molecule-sec was reported for the vapor-phase reaction of 1,2,3-trimethylbenzene with OH radicals (Atkinson, 1985). At 25 °C, a rate constant of 2.69 x lO " cm /molecule-sec was reported for the same reaction (Ohta and Ohyama, 1985). 2,3-Butanedione was the only products identified from the OH radical-initiated reaction of 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene in the presence of nitrogen dioxide. The amount of 2,3-butanedione formed decreased with increased concentration of nitrogen dioxide (Bethel et al., 2000). 

Photolytic. When synthetic air containing gaseous nitrous acid and ///-xylene was exposed to artificial sunlight (L = 300-450 nm) biacetyl, peroxyacetal nitrate, and methyl nitrate were formed (Cox et al., 1980). They reported a rate constant of 1.86 x 10 " cm /molecule-sec for the reaction of gaseous ///-xylene with OH radicals based on a value of 8 x lO cmVmolecule-sec for the reaction of ethylene with OH radicals. 

D-Erythrose undergoes self-aldolization in alkali solution, to form d- / co-L- /3 C6 TO-3-octulopyranose by combination of the 1,2-enediol and aldehyde forms. In weak alkali at 105°, syrupy D-erythrose yields d- /ycero-tetrulose, jS-D-a/tro-L-g/ycero-l-octulofuranose, and a-Ti-gluco-i -g/ycero-3-octulopyranose. At 300° in alkali, the major products from syrupy D-erythrose were 1-5% of butanedione (biacetyl) with smaller proportions of pyrocatechol, 33, 2,5-dimethyl-2,5-cyclohexadiene-l,4-dione (2,5-dimethylbenzoquinone), and 2,5-dimethyl-1,4-benzenediol (2,5-dimethylhydroquinone). It was assumed that D-erythrose is reduced to erythritol by a Cannizzaro type of reaction, followed by dehydration of erythritol to form biacetyl. However, very low proportions (<1%) of biacetyl are formed from erythritol compared with D-erythrose itself. Apparently, some other mechanism predominates in the formation of biacetyl. 

Glyceraldehyde (2,3-dihydroxypropanal), acetol, and dihydroxyace-tone form 1-5% of biacetyl and a number of other products, including pyrocatechol and 33, after exposure to aqueous alkali at 300°. Such trioses as glyceraldehyde and dihydroxyacetone have been shown to form various hexoses by aldol reaction. Aldolization, followed by retro-aldoliza-tion, is undoubtedly a major consideration when three-, four-, and five-carbon sugars are subjected to elevated temperatures. Differences in thermolysis products, partially quantitative, are noticeable at 100°, but, at temperatures near 300°, it is quite difficult, if not impossible, to determine if the starting material was a triose, a tetrose, or a pentose. 

Structures have been determined for [Fe(gmi)3](BF4)2 (gmi = MeN=CHCF[=NMe), the iron(II) tris-diazabutadiene-cage complex of (79) generated from cyclohexanedione rather than from biacetyl, and [Fe(apmi)3][Fe(CN)5(N0)] 4F[20, where apmi is the Schiff base from 2-acetylpyridine and methylamine. Rate constants for mer fac isomerization of [Fe(apmi)3] " were estimated indirectly from base hydrolysis kinetics, studied for this and other Schiff base complexes in methanol-water mixtures. The attenuation by the —CH2— spacer of substituent effects on rate constants for base hydrolysis of complexes [Fe(sb)3] has been assessed for pairs of Schiff base complexes derived from substituted benzylamines and their aniline analogues. It is generally believed that iron(II) Schiff base complexes are formed by a template mechanism on the Fe " ", but isolation of a precursor in which two molecules of Schiff base and one molecule of 2-acetylpyridine are coordinated to Fe + suggests that Schiff base formation in the presence of this ion probably occurs by attack of the amine at coordinated, and thereby activated, ketone rather than by a true template reaction. ... 

Reactions of carbonyl compounds such as pyridine 2-carboxaldehyde, glyoxal, biacetyl, or benzil with 2-aminothiophenol on an Fe + template give benzothiazolinate (198) complexes. The complex from pyridine 2-carboxaldehyde, for example, was formulated, on the basis of NMR and Mossbauer spectroscopy and of analysis (C, H, N, and Fe) as the bis-(A,iS)-ligand-bis-aqua complexes of (199), an isomeric form in equilibrium with (198). However as they are diamagnetic it seems more likely that they are [Fe(199)2] 2H20, containing terdentate (N,N,S) (199), than the proposed [Fe(199)2(H20)2]. 

Reactions of c -[Ru(bpy)2Cl2] with ligands (86) or (87) (X = CH2) in EtOH(aq) lead to [Ru(bpy)2(86)] + and [Ru(bpy)2(87, X = CH2)] respectively. When X = 0 in ligand (87), the product is the pyridine carboxylate complex [Ru(bpy)2(pyC02)], the structure of which is confirmed by X-ray crystallography. Complexes of the type [Ru(bpy)2L] " in which L represents a series of mono- and dihydrazones have been prepared and characterized by spectroscopic methods (including variable temperature H NMR) and a structure determination for L = biacetyl di(phenylhydrazone). When L is 2-acetylpyridine hydrazone or 2-acetylpyridine phenylhydrazone, [Ru(bpy)2L] + shows an emission, but none is observed for the dihydrazone complexes. The pyrazoline complex [Ru(bpy)2L] (L = 5-(4-nitrophenyl)-l-phenyl-3-(2-pyridyl)-2-pyrazoline) can be isolated in two diastereoisomeric forms. At 298 K, these exhibit similar MLCT absorptions, but at 77 K, their emission maxima and lifetimes are significantly different. ... 

When acetone is irradiated in the presence of cyclobutene, the same competition between photocycloaddition and olefin dimerization is observed, with transfer being about ten times more efficient than oxetane formation. In this case, both reactions involve the triplet, since no reaction occurs upon addition of biacetyl.83... 

Zinc chloride-doped natural phosphate was shown to have catalytic behavior in the 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions of nucleoside acetylenes with azides to form triazolonucleosides <99SC1057>. A soluble polymer-supported 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of carbohydrate-derived 1,2,3-triazoles has been reported <99H(51)1807>. 2-Styrylchromones and sodium azide were employed in the synthesis of 4(5)-aryl-5(4)-(2-chromonyl)-1,2,3-triazoles <99H(51)481>. Lead(IV) acetate oxidation of mixed bis-aroyl hydrazones of biacetyl led to l-(a-aroyloxyarylideneamino)-3,5-dimethyl-l,2,3-triazoles <99H(51)599>. Reaction of 1-amino-3-methylbenzimidazolium chloride with lead(fV) acetate afforded l-methyl-l/f-benzotriazole <99BML961>. Hydrogenation reactions of some [l,2,3]triazolo[l,5-a]pyridines, [l,2,3]triazolo[l,5-a]quinolines, and [l,2,3]triazolo[l,5-a]isoquinolines were studied <99T12881>. 

The photochemistry of biacetyl has been extensively studied, both in the vapor phase and in solution. In the vapor phase the products include carbon monoxide, ethane, methane, acetone, ketene, and 2,3-pentanedione. It has been shown that the primary process is cleavage of the carbon-carbon bond between the two carbonyl groups to yield acyl radicals, which on further reaction give the observed products.14,43... 

However, irradiation of biacetyl in solution gives products derived from an initial hydrogen abstraction by a photoexcited biacetyl unless the reaction is carried out in a solvent containing no abstractable hydrogen atoms.24,44 Irradiation of biacetyl in perfluorinated solvents, conditions under which no hydrogen abstraction should take place, yields small amounts of carbon monoxide and ethane, but the quantum yield for their production is much lower than is observed at low pressure in the vapor state.24 The quantum yield for the disappearance of biacetyl in perfluoro-n-octane at 100° with 366 nm exciting light is reported to be 2.4 x 10 3 this compares with a value of 0.21 for biacetyl disappearance in the vapor state at 1.8 x 10"3A/... 

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