Bromination of aromatic ethers

The positive bromination of aromatics ethers was first studied by Bradfield et al.193 and by Branch and Jones194. The reaction of hypobromous acid in 75 % aqueous acetic acid with benzyl 4-nitrophenyl ether and 4-nitrophenetole at 20 °C was very rapid and approximately second-order193. The value of k2/[H+] remained constant in the [H+] range 0.005-0.090 M for the effect of added mineral acids on the bromination of 4-nitroanisole and 4-nitrophenetole (at 19.8 °C)194. The variation in reaction rate with the percentage of acetic acid in the medium was also studied and showed a large increase in the 0-10 % range with a levelling off at approximately 25 % acetic acid (Table 52) this was attributed... 

Fig. 9. Bromination of aromatic ethers with several polyhalides...

Fig. 10. Selective bromination of aromatic ethers with BTMA Bt3...

See A. G. Mistry, K. Smith and M. R. Bye in D. Price, B. Iddon and B. J. Wakefield, Ed., "Bromine Compounds Chemistry and Applications", Elsevier, Amsterdam, 1988 (contains repons of a conference held in Salford, September 1986), p.277. The process has recently been developed into a general method for para-selective bromination of aromatic ethers H. Konishi, K. Aritoni, T. Okano and J. Kiji, Bull. Chem. Soc. Japan, 1989,62, 591. 

Iron(III) bromide [10031-26-2], FeBr, is obtained by reaction of iron or inon(II) bromide with bromine at 170—200°C. The material is purified by sublimation ia a bromine atmosphere. The stmcture of inoa(III) bromide is analogous to that of inon(III) chloride. FeBr is less stable thermally than FeCl, as would be expected from the observation that Br is a stronger reductant than CF. Dissociation to inon(II) bromide and bromine is complete at ca 200°C. The hygroscopic, dark red, rhombic crystals of inon(III) bromide are readily soluble ia water, alcohol, ether, and acetic acid and are slightly soluble ia Hquid ammonia. Several hydrated species and a large number of adducts are known. Solutions of inon(III) bromide decompose to inon(II) bromide and bromine on boiling. Iron(III) bromide is used as a catalyst for the bromination of aromatic compounds. 

Bradfield et al.21g first studied the kinetics of molecular bromination using aromatic ethers in 50% aqueous acetic acid at 18 °C. They showed that the kinetics are complicated by the hydrogen bromide produced in the reaction which reacts with free bromine to give the tribromide in BrJ, a very unreactive electrophile. To avoid this complication, reactions were carried out in the presence of 5-10 molar excess of hydrogen bromide, and under these conditions second-order rate coefficients (believed to be I02k2 by comparison with later data) were obtained as follows after making allowance for the equilibrium Br2 + Br7 Bn, for which K = 50 at 18 °C 4-chloroanisole (1.12), 4-bromoanisole (1.20), 4-... 

The Ullman reaction has long been known as a method for the synthesis of aromatic ethers by the reaction of a phenol with an aromatic halide in the presence of a copper compound as a catalyst. It is a variation on the nucleophilic substitution reaction since a phenolic salt reacts with the halide. Nonactivated aromatic halides can be used in the synthesis of poly(arylene edier)s, dius providing a way of obtaining structures not available by the conventional nucleophilic route. The ease of halogen displacement was found to be the reverse of that observed for activated nucleophilic substitution reaction, that is, I > Br > Cl F. The polymerizations are conducted in benzophenone with a cuprous chloride-pyridine complex as a catalyst. Bromine compounds are the favored reactants.53,124 127 Poly(arylene ether)s have been prepared by Ullman coupling of bisphenols and... 

Our recent studies on effective bromination and oxidation using benzyltrimethylammonium tribromide (BTMA Br3), stable solid, are described. Those involve electrophilic bromination of aromatic compounds such as phenols, aromatic amines, aromatic ethers, acetanilides, arenes, and thiophene, a-bromination of arenes and acetophenones, and also bromo-addition to alkenes by the use of BTMA Br3. Furthermore, oxidation of alcohols, ethers, 1,4-benzenediols, hindered phenols, primary amines, hydrazo compounds, sulfides, and thiols, haloform reaction of methylketones, N-bromination of amides, Hofmann degradation of amides, and preparation of acylureas and carbamates by the use of BTMA Br3 are also presented. 

Bromination of Aromatic Compounds. Phenols, anilines, and other electron-rich aromatic corrqiounds can be monobromi-nated using NBS in DMF with higher yields and higher levels of para selectivity than with Br2 iV-TrimethyIsilylanilines and aromatic ethers are also selectively brominated by NBS in CHCI3 or ecu. A-Substituted pyrroles are brominated with NBS in THF to afford 2-bromopyrroles (1 equiv) or 2,5-dibromopyrroles (2 equiv) with high selectivity, whereas bromination with Br2 affords the thermodynamically more stable 3-bromopyrroles. The use of NBS in DMF also achieves the controlled bromination of imidazole and nitroimidazole. Thiophenes are also selectively brominated in the 2-position using NBS in acetic acid-chloroform. ... 

For the identification of aromatic ethers use is made either of the reactivity of the aromatic nucleus (bromination, chlorosulfonation), or else they can be cleaved with hydriodic acid (see p. 201). In the latter case, however, only the alkyl group bound to oxygen is identified. The oxidation of side chains (compare p. 129) has only a limited use the alkoxy group on the aromatic nucleus increases the stability of addition compounds (see p. 126) with picric acid, which can also be used for identification. 

Bromo derivatives of aromatic ethers are prepared by dropping bromine into a solution of the ether in glacial acetic acid, ethanol, or chloroform. The isolation is carried out by diluting the mixture with water or by distilling off the solvent. The degree of bromination is dependent predominantly on the properties and the position of the fimctional groups present on the aromatic nucleus. The amount of bromine used is dependent on the degree of bromination. 

Charge-Transfer Compounds. Similat to iodine and chlorine, bromine can form charge-transfer complexes with organic molecules that can serve as Lewis bases. The frequency of the iatense uv charge-transfer adsorption band is dependent on the ionization potential of the donor solvent molecule. Electronic charge can be transferred from a TT-electron system as ia the case of aromatic compounds or from lone-pairs of electrons as ia ethers and amines. 

Combined effect of BTMA Br3 and ZnCl2 in acetic acid provides a new excellent bromination procedure for arenes. That is, while such reactive aromatic compounds as phenols, aromatic amines, aromatic ethers, and acetanilides have been easily brominated by BTMA Br3 in dichloromethane in the presence of methanol, the reaction of arenes, less reactive compounds, with BTMA Br3 in dichloromethane-methanol did not proceed at all, even under reflux for many hours. However, arenes could be smoothly brominated by use of this agent in acetic acid with the aid of the Lewis acid ZnCl2 (Fig. 13) (ref. 16). 

Commercially available poiybrominated aromatic ethers have been analyzed by reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography. NMR spectra of material isolated by preparative methods served to identify the observed peaks as congeners of tetrabromo to nonabromo diphenyl ether. A bromination pathway was clearly indicated. 

In 1979, it was stated that poiybrominated aromatic ethers have received little attention (ref. 1). That statement is still applicable. Analyses to characterize this class of commercial flame retardants have been performed using UV (refs. 1-2), GC (refs. 1-6), and GC-MS (refs. 1-4). The bromine content of observed peaks was measured by GC-MS, but no identification could be made. The composition of poiybrominated (PB) diphenyl ether (DPE) was predicted from the expected relationship with polyhalogenated biphenyl, a class which has received extensive attention. NMR (refs. 3-6) was successfully used to identify relatively pure material which had six, or fewer, bromine atoms per molecule. A high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method described (ref. 1) was not as successful as GC. A reversed phase (RP) HPLC method was mentioned, but no further work was published. 

When phenylacetonitrile is converted to its anion in the presence of an excess of LDA and then allowed to react with a brominated aromatic ether such as 2-bromo-4-methylmethoxybenzene, the product is the result of both cyanation and benzylation. 

A synthesis of the B-ring aromatic corticosteroid (286), the analogue of cortex-olone, started with the previously reported B-ring aromatic norpregnane (285). Development of the corticosteroid side-chain employed bromination of the 17a-hydroxy-20-oxo-derivative with trimethylphenylammonium bromide perbromide. " Reaction of perchloryl fluoride with the mixed enol ethers (287) and (288) provided, after hydrolysis, the 17a-fluoro-20-oxo-compound (290) and the 21-fluoro-20-oxo-compound (291). In contrast, the enamine (289) led only to the 17a,21-difluoro-20-oxo-compound. A series of 17a-acyloxy-21-deoxy-... 

Notes Used for allylic and benzylic brominations (Wohl-Zieeler Reaction). With moist DMSO the reagent is useful for bromohydrin formation, providing trans addition of bromine and water. Can brominate alpha to carbonyl in carbonyl (carboxyl)-containing compounds. With DMF useful for aromatic bromination of activated aromatic rings, such as phenols, aromatic ethers, aniline derivatives and activated heterocyclic compounds. For similar chemistry, see also NBA, N-Bromoacetamide. 

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