Borane-dimethyl sulfide adduct

Borane—dimethyl sulfide complex (BMS) (2) is free of these inconveniences. The complex is a pure 1 1 adduct, ca 10 Af in BH, stable indefinitely at room temperature and soluble in ethers, dichioromethane, benzene, and other solvents (56,57). Its disadvantage is the unpleasant smell of dimethyl sulfide, which is volatile and water insoluble. Borane—1,4-thioxane complex (3), which is also a pure 1 1 adduct, ca 8 Af in BH, shows solubiUty characteristics similar to BMS (58). 1,4-Thioxane [15980-15-1] is slightly soluble in water and can be separated from the hydroboration products by extraction into water. 

Further adaptations of the boranes has led to reagents which reduce carboxylic acids but afford thio-acetals rather than the aldehyde itself.Thus, with the thioborane (3 equation 1), aliphatic acids give 80-87% yields of thioacetals but aromatic acids respond less well in giving significant quantities of sulfides as well. Carboxylic acid esters are inert to this reagent but give sulfides if a Lewis acid is included. Similarly, the 1,3,2-dithiaborinane-dimethyl sulfide adduct (4 equation 2) affords cyclic dithioacetals in 70-90% isolated yields in the presence of SnCb. Aliphatic acids react in about 6 h at room temperature but aromatic acids need about 20 h and yields are somewhat poorer. This area has been reviewed.From a practical viewpoint, it should be noted that the dithiaborinane (4) requires a week for its preparation. 

Organoboranes are obtained by addition of borane or alkyl boranes to alkenes (or alkynes). Borane itself can be prepared by reaction of boron trifluoride ether-ate with sodium borohydride. Borane exists as a dimer, but solutions containing an electron donor, such as an ether, amine or sulfide, allow adduct formation. The complexes BHa-THF and the borane-dimethyl sulfide complex BH3 SMc2 are commercially available and provide a convenient source of borane. The dimethyl sulfide complex is more stable than BHa-THF and has the additional advantage that it is soluble in a variety of organic solvents, such as diethyl ether and hexane. 

Certain base adducts of borane, such as triethylamine borane [1722-26-5] (C2H )2N BH, dimethyl sulfide borane [13292-87-OJ, (CH2)2S BH, and tetrahydrofuran borane [14044-65-6] C HgO BH, are more easily and safely handled than B2H and are commercially available. These compounds find wide use as reducing agents and in hydroboration reactions (57). A wide variety of borane reducing agents and hydroborating agents is available from Aldrich Chemical Co., Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Base displacement reactions can be used to convert one adduct to another. The relative stabiUties of BH adducts as a function of Group 15 and 16 donor atoms are P > N and S > O. This order has sparked controversy because the trend opposes the normal order estabUshed by BF. In the case of anionic nucleophiles, base displacement leads to ionic hydroborate adducts (eqs. 20,21). 

Borane reacts with electron pair donors to form Lewis acid-base complexes. The most common forms for use in synthesis are the THF and dimethyl sulfide complexes. Stronger bases, particularly amines, form less reactive adducts. 

Hydroboration. The advantage of this borane (as dimethyl sulfide complex) in hydroboration is that the adducts can be oxidized directly to carboxylic acids in excellent yields. Thus a synthesis of y-valerolactone from 4-(p-nitrobenzoyloxy)-l-pentene can be easily achieved. This particular ester is used in this case because it is reduced very slowly (in comparison with the acetate). 

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