Boron fluoride Lewis acidity

Boron-based Lewis acids are often used in organic syntheses. Since the boron atom has an empty / -orbital, many boron compounds can function as Lewis acids. Typical boron Lewis acids are boron trihalides, for which Lewis acidity increases according to the order of fluoride < chloride < bromide < iodide, the reason for this order being the relative abilities of the different halogens to act as 7r-donors to boron. 

Nitronium tetrafluoroborate was first prepared by adding a mixture of anhydrous hydrofluoric acid and boron trifluoride to a solution of dinitrogen pentoxide in nitromethane. Nitric acid can be used in place of dinitrogen pentoxide, and by replacing boron trifluoride by other Lewis-acid fluorides Olah and his co-workers prepared an extensive series of stable nitronium salts. ... 

Lewis Acid Complexes. Sulfolane complexes with Lewis acids, such as boron trifluoride or phosphoms pentafluoride (17). For example, at room temperature, sulfolane and boron trifluoride combine in a 1 1 mole ratio with the evolution of heat to give a white, hygroscopic soHd which melts at 37°C. The reaction of sulfolane with methyl fluoride and antimony pentafluoride inhquid sulfur dioxide gives crystalline tetrahydro-l-methoxythiophenium-l-oxidehexafluoroantimonate, the first example of an alkoxysulfoxonium salt (18). 

Grown Ethers. Ethylene oxide forms cycHc oligomers (crown ethers) in the presence of fluorinated Lewis acids such as boron tritiuoride, phosphoms pentafluoride, or antimony pentafluoride. Hydrogen fluoride is the preferred catalyst (47). The presence of BF , PF , or SbF salts of alkah, alkaline earth, or transition metals directs the oligomerization to the cycHc tetramer, 1,4,7,10-tetraoxacyclododecane [294-93-9] (12-crown-4), pentamer, 1,4,7,10,13-pentaoxacyclopentadecane [33100-27-6] (15-crown-6), andhexamer, 1,4,7,10,13,16-hexaoxacyclooctadecane [17455-13-9]... 

The role of Lewis acids in the formation of oxazoles from diazocarbonyl compounds and nitriles has primarily been studied independently by two groups. Doyle et al. first reported the use of aluminium(III) chloride as a catalyst for the decomposition of diazoketones.<78TL2247> In a more detailed study, a range of Lewis acids was screened for catalytic activity, using diazoacetophenone la and acetonitrile as the test reaction.<80JOC3657> Of the catalysts employed, boron trifluoride etherate was found to be the catalyst of choice, due to the low yield of the 1-halogenated side-product 17 (X = Cl or F) compared to 2-methyI-5-phenyloxazole 18. Unfortunately, it was found that in the case of boron trifluoride etherate, the nitrile had to be used in a ten-fold excess, however the use of antimony(V) fluoride allowed the use of the nitrile in only a three fold excess (Table 1). 

Boron trihalides are strong Lewis acids that react with a wide collection of Lewis bases. Many adducts form with donor atoms from Group 15 (N, P, As) or Group 16 (O, S). Metal fluorides transfer F ion to BF3 to give tetrafluoroborate salts LiF + BF3 LiBF4 Tetrafluoroborate anion is an important derivative of BF3 because it is nonreactive. With four <7 bonds, [BF4 ] anion has no tendency to coordinate further ligands. Tetrafluoroborate salts are used in synthesis when a bulky inert anion is necessary. 

Lewis acid-catalysed deprotection of enol ethers to yield carbonyl compounds is aided by the addition of tetra-n-butylammonium fluoride. Optimum yields were obtained with equimolar amounts of the enol ether in dichloromethane with the fluoride and boron trifluoride etherate [20, 21]. 

The transitory existence of alkylcarbonium ions in alkyl halide-Lewis acid halide systems has been inferred from a variety of observations, sueh as vapour-pressure depressions of OHsCl and C2H5CI in the presence of gallium chloride (Brown et al., 1950), the electric conductivities of aluminium chloride in ethyl chloride (Wertyporoch and Firla, 1933) and of alkyl fluorides in boron trifluoride (Olah et al., 1957), as well as the... 

Numerous Lewis acids promote the formation of nitronium ions when in the presence of nitric acid. Nitric acid-boron trifluoride, and the nitric acid-hydrogen fluoride-boron trifluoride reagents described by Olah are practical nitrating agents the latter provides a convenient preparation of nitronium tetrafluoroborate. Olah reports that nitric acid-magic acid (FSOsH-SbFs) is extremely effective for the polynitration of aromatic substrates. 

In this procedure, the ketone is first converted to its enol acetate by reaction with acetic anhydride in the presence of a proton acid. Since this enol acetylation is performed under equilibrating conditions, the more stable enol acetate (usually the more highly substituted isomer) is produced. Acetylation of this enol acetate, catalyzed by the Lewis acid boron trifluoride, usually leads to the formation of the enol acetate of a /3-diketone which is cleaved by boron trifluoride to form acetyl fluoride and the borofluoride complex of the /3-diketone. Thus, this procedure offers a convenient and general synthetic route... 

Pure isomerizations have been observed in Lewis acid catalyzed thermal1,2 7 and photochemical3 4 rearrangements, but incorporation of the electrophile occurs with acid fluoride-boron trifluoride.5 6 Examples are collected in Table 2. 

The action of strong aprotic Lewis acids (antimony(V) fluoride, arsenic(V) fluoride etc.) provokes the ionization of xenon difluoride, leading to the formation of fluoroxenonium salts XcF + MFn or Xe2F3 MFn less strong acceptors of the fluoride ion (hydrogen fluoride, boron trifluoride, etc.) polarize the xenon difluoride molecule. 

The addition of chlorine monofluoridc across the C = 0 bonds in difluorophosgene, per-fluoroacyl fluorides, and perfluoroketones with the formation of hypochlorites occurs only in the presence of the catalysts potassium fluoride, rubidium fluoride, cesium fluoride80,81 or the strong Lewis acids hydrogen fluoride, boron trifluoride, or arsenic(V) fluoride.82 The cesium fluoride catalyzed reactions are carried out in an autoclave for 2-3 hours at — 20"C or left overnight.80... 

Covalent fluorides of group 3 and group 5 elements (boron, tin, phosphorus, antimony, etc) are widely used in organic synthesis as strong Lewis acids Boron trifluoride etherate is one of the most common reagents used to catalyze many organic reactions. A representative example is its recent application as a catalyst in the cycloadditions of 2-aza-l,3-dienes with different dienophiles [14] Boron trifluoride etherate and other fluormated Lewis acids are effective activators of the... 

The strength or coordinating power of different Lewis acids can vary widely against different Lewis bases. Thus, for example, in the case of boron trihalides, boron trifluoride coordinates best with fluorides, but not with chlorides, bromides, or iodides. In coordination with Lewis bases such as amines and phosphines, BF3 shows preference to the former (as determined by equilibrium constant measurements).66 The same set of bases behaves differently with the Ag+ ion. The Ag+ ion complexes phosphines much more strongly than amines. In the case of halides (F, CP, Br, and P), fluoride is the most effective base in protic acid solution. However, the order... 

Compounds 4.75 and 4.76 formally contain tetravalent silicon, which is not electron-deficient. It is, however, a strong Lewis acid, and on reaction with F , five-coordinate silicon compounds are obtained. In the case of 4.75, the fluoride anion is localised mainly on the boron atom, although it does display dynamic behaviour involving hopping between boron and silicon. Compound 4.76 as the KF adduct contains two five-coordinate silicon atoms that chelate the F anion. The coordination sphere of the K+ counter-ion is completed by a molecule of [18] crown-6 (Figure 4.32a). 

Lewis acids such as boron trihalides will also form stronger bonds with fluoride than with the other halogens, and can be used to abstract fluoride selectively from halogenated compounds. Some examples of Friedel-Crafts alkylations with fluoro-haloalkanes in which only fluoride is displaced are sketched in Scheme 4.14. As shown by the last example, however, hydride migrations can readily occur under such strongly acidic reaction conditions. 

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