Carbonylation hydrocarboxylation

As a unique reaction of Pd(II), the oxidative carbonylation of alkenes is possible with Pd(ll) salts. Oxidative carbonylation is mechanistically different from the hydrocarboxylation of alkenes catalyzed by Pd(0), which is treated in Chapter 4, Section 7.1. The oxidative carbonylation in alcohol can be understood in the following way. The reaction starts by the formation of the alkoxy-carbonylpalladium 218. Carbopalladation of alkene (alkene insertion) with 218 gives 219. Then elimination of /3-hydrogen of this intermediate 219 proceeds to... 

C-19 dicarboxyhc acid can be made from oleic acid or derivatives and carbon monoxide by hydroformylation, hydrocarboxylation, or carbonylation. In hydroformylation, ie, the Oxo reaction or Roelen reaction, the catalyst is usually cobalt carbonyl or a rhodium complex (see Oxo process). When using a cobalt catalyst a mixture of isomeric C-19 compounds results due to isomerization of the double bond prior to carbon monoxide addition (80). 

In hydrocarboxylation, the Reppe reaction, the catalyst can be nickel or cobalt carbonyl or a palladium complex where R = H or alkyl. 

Carbonylation, or the Koch reaction, can be represented by the same equation as for hydrocarboxylation. The catalyst is H2SO4. A mixture of C-19 dicarboxyhc acids results due to extensive isomerization of the double bond. Methyl-branched isomers are formed by rearrangement of the intermediate carbonium ions. Reaction of oleic acid with carbon monoxide at 4.6 MPa (45 atm) using 97% sulfuric acid gives an 83% yield of the C-19 dicarboxyhc acid (82). Further optimization of the reaction has been reported along with physical data of the various C-19 dibasic acids produced. The mixture of C-19 acids was found to contain approximately 25% secondary carboxyl and 75% tertiary carboxyl groups. As expected, the tertiary carboxyl was found to be very difficult to esterify (80,83). 

Most ring syntheses of this type are of modern origin. The cobalt or rhodium carbonyl catalyzed hydrocarboxylation of unsaturated alcohols, amines or amides provides access to tetrahydrofuranones, pyrrolidones or succinimides, although appreciable amounts of the corresponding six-membered heterocycle may also be formed (Scheme 55a) (73JOM(47)28l). Hydrocarboxylation of 4-pentyn-2-ol with nickel carbonyl yields 3-methylenetetrahy-drofuranone (Scheme 55b). Carbonylation of Schiff bases yields 2-arylphthalimidines (Scheme 55c). The hydroformylation of o-nitrostyrene, subsequent reduction of the nitro group and cyclization leads to the formation of skatole (Scheme 55d) (81CC82). 

If cobalt carbonylpyridine catalyst systems are used, the formation of unbranched carboxylic acids is strongly favored not only by reaction of a-olefins but also by reaction of olefins with internal double bonds ( contrathermo-dynamic double-bond isomerization) [59]. The cobalt carbonylpyridine catalyst of the hydrocarboxylation reaction resembles the cobalt carbonyl-terf-phos-phine catalysts of the hydroformylation reaction. The reactivity of the cobalt-pyridine system in the hydrocarboxylation reaction is remarkable higher than the cobalt-phosphine system in the hydroformylation reaction, especially in the case of olefins with internal double bonds. This reaction had not found an industrial application until now. 

In the metal-carbonyl catalysed hydrocarboxylation of alkynes ( Reppe reaction ) nearly exclusive cia-addition of H—COOH is found (Ohashi et al., 1952). 

Historically, the rhodium catalyzed carbonylation of methanol to acetic acid required large quantities of methyl iodide co-catalyst (1) and the related hydrocarboxylation of olefins required the presence of an alkyl iodide or hydrogen iodide (2). Unfortunately, the alkyl halides pose several significant difficulties since they are highly toxic, lead to iodine contamination of the final product, are highly corrosive, and are expensive to purchase and handle. Attempts to eliminate alkyl halides or their precursors have proven futile to date (1). 

The hydroformylation reaction has been the subject of excellent reviews (for example I, 6-8) therefore, the object of this particular treatise is not to provide comprehensive coverage of all aspects. The basic chemistry is presented, along with recent developments of interest as reported in the literature, although not in chronological order. Stereochemical studies (6) are included only when pertinent to another point under consideration. Carbonylations or hydrocarboxylation reactions which produce ketones, esters, acids, esters, or amides are not included (/). Also not included is the so-called Reppe" synthesis, which is represented by Eq. (1). 

The hydrocarboxylation of styrene (Scheme 5.12) and styrene derivatives results in the formation of arylpropionic acids. Members of the a-arylpropionic acid family are potent non-steroidal anti-inflammatory dmgs (Ibuprofen, Naproxen etc.), therefore a direct and simple route to such compounds is of considerable industrial interest. In fact, there are several patents describing the production of a-arylpropionic acids by hydroxycarbonylation [51,53] (several more listed in [52]). The carbonylation of styrene itself serves as a useful test reaction in order to learn the properties of new catalytic systems, such as activity, selectivity to acids, regioselectivity (1/b ratio) and enantioselectivity (e.e.) in the branched product. In aqueous or in aqueous/organic biphasic systems complexes of palladium were studied exclusively, and the results are summarized in Table 5.2. 

Higher olefins have negligible solubility in water therefore their hydrocarboxylation in aqueous/organic biphasic systems needs co-solvents or phase transfer agents. With the aid of various PT catalysts 1-octene and 1-dodecene were successfully carbonylated to the corresponding carboxylic acids with good yields (< 85 %) and up to 87 % selectivity towards the formation of the linear add with a [Co2(CO)g] catalyst precursor under forcing conditions (150 °C, 200 bar CO) [57],... 

Hydrocarboxylation can also be accomplished under mild conditions (160°C and 50 atm) by the use of nickel carbonyl as catalyst. This is more often applied to triple bonds to give a,P-unsaturated acids, in which cases the conditions are milder still. Acid catalysts are used along with the nickel carbonyl, but basic catalysts can also be employed.567 Other metallic... 

For reviews of hydrocarboxylation of double and triple bonds catalyzed by acids or metallic compounds, see Lapidus Pirozhkov Russ. Chem. Rev. 1989, 58. 117-137 Anderson Davies, in Hartley Patai, Ref. 422, vol. 3, pp. 335-359, pp. 335-348 in Falbe New Syntheses with Carbon Monoxide Springer New York, 1980, the articles by Mullen, pp. 243-308 and Bahrmann, pp. 372-413 in Wender Pino Organic Syntheses via Metal Carbonyls, vol. 2 Wiley New York, 1977, the articles by Pino, Piacenti Bianchi, pp. 233-296 and Pino Braca pp. 419-516 Eidus Lapidus Puzitskii Nefedov Russ. Chem. Rev. 1973, 42, 199-213, Russ. Chem. Rev, 1971, 40. 429-440 Falbe Carbon Monoxide in Organic Synthesis, Springer Berlin. 1970, pp. 78-174. 

The acid-catalyzed hydrocarboxylation of an alkene is known as the Koch Reaction. When the source of both the CO and the H20 is formic acid, the process is called the Koch-Haaf Carbonylation. 

The papers in this volume concern results observed in catalytic systems. They span a broad range of catalytic reactions including hydro-formylation, hydrocarboxylation, hydrogenation, carbonylation, cyana-tion, and olefin oxidation. To some extent, the results provide a significant extension of our understanding of previously studied catalysts and catalytic reactions. However, some of the papers are concerned with newer areas of research and feature results of both scientific and potential industrial importance. 

Figure 4.8 Hydrocarboxylation and carbonylation of propylene and n-propyl iodide. The outer cycle is the hydrocarboxylation pathway, while the inner cycle is the carbonylation pathway. The carbonylation pathway generates only n-butyric acid iodide. Note that 4.27 is identical with 4.5. A different designation is used to avoid cross-...

There are some relatively small-volume but value-added chemicals that are commercially manufactured by carbonylation or hydrocarboxylation reactions. A few examples with some details are given in Table 4.2. 

TABLE 4.2 Chemicals Manufactured by Carbonylation or Hydrocarboxylation Reactions... 

Ans. Hydrocarboxylation is the main route for /-propanol carbonylation (under the reaction conditions propylene is generated). Low pH favors formation of 4.27. 

Practically, all of the above reactions have been realized, with different metals and conditions. In determining the scope of this review, we have attempted to focus our attention on the nature of the transformations at the metal center, especially with regard to oxidation state and formation of the initial alkyl-, alkoxy-, or carboalkoxy-metal bond from saturated precursors. Therefore, while it appears that hydrocarboxylation reactions make some contribution to the total reactivity in a variety of alcohol carbonylation systems, we feel that the mechanistic aspects of this topic would be better covered separately. So, except for noting where this chemistry makes probable contributions, it will not be discussed here. Similarly, homologation reactions, which are believed to usually proceed by way of aldehyde intermediates, will be discussed only as they pertain to the incorporation of the CO into the metal-carbon bonds, that is, the factors governing the subsequent hydrogenation reactions will not be covered. 

To date, mechanistic studies into the carbonylations of secondary alcohols with the same type of rhodium/RI catalyst system have used 2-propanol as a model substrate. At least part of the reason for this has been to minimize the expected complexities of the product analyses. The carbonylation of 2-propanol gives mixtures of n- and isobutyric acids. Two studies have been (24b, 32) reported with this system. The first of these (32) concluded that the reactivity could be described in terms of the same nucleophilic mechanism as has been described above, despite the fact that the reaction rates at 200°C were approximately 140 times faster than predicted by this type of chemistry (24b). Other data also indicated that this SN2-type reactivity was probably not the sole contributor to the reaction scheme. For example, the authors were not able to adequately explain either the effect of reaction conditions on product distribution or the activation parameters. They also did not consider the possible contribution of a hydrocarboxylation pathway, which is known to be extremely efficient in analogous systems (55). For these reasons, a second study into the carbonylation of 2-propanol was initiated (24b, 57). 

Scheme 8. Suggested mechanism for the contribution of hydrocarboxylation during the nickel-catalyzed carbonylation of higher alcohols.

The salt production can be circumvented by performing the selective Pd/ tppts-catalysed carbonylation of benzyl alcohol in an acidic aqueous biphasic system (Fig. 1.36) [106]. This methodology was also applied to the synthesis of ibuprofen (see earlier) by biphasic carbonylation of l-(4-isobutylphenyl)ethanol [107] and to the biphasic hydrocarboxylation of olefins [108]. 

The reaction of an aUcene (or aUcyne), CO, and H2O to directly produce a carboxylic acid is called Reppe carbony-lation chemistry or, more recently, hydrocarboxylation (see Reppe Reaction). An excellent review of palladium-catalyzed Reppe carbonylation systems has been published recently by Kiss, and coverage of this important material will not be repeated here. This catalytic reaction has been known for quite some time, although the stoichiometric Ni(CO)4-based carbonylation of acetylene was the first commercial carbonylation process implemented (equation 13). The extreme toxicity of Ni(CO)4, however, has limited practical applications (see Nickel Organometallic Chemistry). Co, Rh, and Pd catalysts have certainly replaced Ni(CO)4 in smaller-scale laboratory reactions, though for historical reasons a number of the fim-damental mechanisms discussed in this section are based on Ni(CO)4. 

One of the first mechanistic proposals for the hydrocarboxylation of alkenes catalyzed by nickel-carbonyl complexes came from Heck in 1963 and is shown in Scheme 24. An alternate possibility suggested by Heck was that HX could add to the alkene, producing an alkyl halide that would then undergo an oxidative addition to the metal center, analogous to the acetic acid mechanism (Scheme 19). Studies of Rh- and Ir-catalyzed hydrocarboxylation reactions have demonstrated that for these metals, the HX addition mechanism, shown in Scheme 24, dominates with ethylene or other short-chain alkene substrates. Once again, HI is the best promoter for this catalytic reaction as long as there are not any other ligands present that are susceptible to acid attack (e g. phosphines). 

The acid-catalyzed hydrocarboxylation of alkenes (the Koch reaction) can be performed in a number of ways. In one method, the alkene is treated with carbon monoxide and water at 100-350°C and 500-1000-atm pressure with a mineral acid catalyst. However, the reaction can also be performed under milder conditions. If the alkene is first treated with CO and catalyst and then water added, the reaction can be accomplished at 0-50°C and 1-100 atm. If formic acid is used as the source of both the CO and the water, the reaction can be carried out at room temperature and atmospheric pressure.The formic acid procedure is called the Koch-Haaf reaction (the Koch-Haaf reaction can also be applied to alcohols, see 10-77). Nearly all alkenes can be hydrocarboxylated by one or more of these procedures. However, conjugated dienes are polymerized instead. Hydrocarboxylation can also be accomplished under mild conditions (160°C and 50 atm) by the use of nickel carbonyl as catalyst. Acid catalysts are used along with the nickel carbonyl, but basic catalysts can also be employed. Other metallic salts and complexes can be used, sometimes with variations in the reaction procedure, including palladium, platinum, and rhodium catalysts. The Ni(CO)4-catalyzed oxidative carbonylation with CO and water as a nucleophile is often called Reppe carbonylationP The toxic nature of nickel... 

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