Carbonyl compounds sulfone conjugate additions

Among the olefination reactions, those of phosphonium ylides, phosphonate anions, silylmethyl anions, and sulfone anions are discussed. This chapter also includes a section on conjugate addition of carbon nucleophiles to a, (J-unsaturated carbonyl compounds. The reactions in this chapter are among the most important and general of the carbon-carbon bond-forming reactions. 

A large number of reactions have been presented in this chapter. However, all of these reactions involve an enolate ion (or a related species) acting as a nucleophile (see Table 20.2). This nucleophile reacts with one of the electrophiles discussed in Chapters 8, 18, and 19 (see Table 20.3). The nucleophile can bond to the electrophilic carbon of an alkyl halide (or sulfonate ester) in an SN2 reaction, to the electrophilic carbonyl carbon of an aldehyde or ketone in an addition reaction (an aldol condensation), to the electrophilic carbonyl carbon of an ester in an addition reaction (an ester condensation) or to the electrophilic /3-carbon of an a,/3-unsaturated compound in a conjugate addition (Michael reaction). These possibilities are summarized in the following equations ... 

Another frequent use of (1) and its enantiomer is the stereospecific conjugate addition of carbonyl compounds to a,p-unsaturated systems. Most published examples contain chiral imine derivatives of cyclic ketones, which add to a,p-unsaturated esters and ketones in a highly stereoselective manner (eq 13 and eq 14). When the ketone is not symmetrically substituted, reaction usually occurs at the most substituted a-position, including those cases where the ketone is a-substituted by oxygen (eq 15). High stereoselectivity can also be achieved when the Michael acceptor is other than an unsaturated ketone or ester, such as a vinyl sulfone (eq 16). Intramolecular variations of this transformation have also been described (eq 17). ... 

Simple alkencs that do undergo the Diels-Alder reaction include conjugated carbonyl compounds, nitro compounds, nitriles, sulfones, aryl alkenes, vinyl ethers and esters, haloalkenes, and dienes. In addition to those you have seen so far, a few examples are shown in the margin. In the last example it is the isolated double bond in the right-hand ring that accepts the diene. Conjugation with the left-hand ring activates this alkene. But what exactly do we mean by activate in this sense We shall return to that question in a minute. 

Conjugate addition of organometals and enol ethers to a,fS-unsaturated carbonyl compounds is one of the backbones in organic synthesis. A less common approach is the use of free radicals, which also add to unactivated double bonds. However, the regiocontrol of such additions is best achieved by means of electronically withdrawing groups (such as carbonyls, nitriles, sulfones, and nitro), which direct the radical attack to the fi-position. 

In order to prepare conjugated olefins, either an allylsulfone or an a,) -unsaturated carbonyl compound is needed. In the case of allylic sulfones, the delocalized carbanion can undergo either a- or y-addition, and the use of enals or enones can result in 1,2- or 1,4-addition products. In general, allylsulfonyl anions, derived from non-stabUized sulfones, undergo additions to carbonyls with excellent a-selectivities (reaction 3.17 [59] Scheme 3.16). The situation is more complex with a, -unsaturated compounds, but conditions have been defined that lead with high preference to adducts resulting from 1,2-addition (reaction 3.18) [60]. 

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