Cyclization, radicals orbital overlap

The synthesis of cyclobutanes is the classical area of application of the Norrish/Yang reaction. It has been discussed comprehensively elsewhere. > > Here, only two special aspects are addressed. The main drawback of Yang cyclization from a practical point of view is the Norrish type 11 cleavage, which almost always competes with the cyclization and is often the only observed process. Nevertheless, the cleavage can be suppressed if the overlap of both radical orbitals with the breaking C-C bond is disturbed by... 

It is important to note here that both of the 5-exo radical cyclizations (133—>132—>131, Scheme 27) must proceed in a cis fashion the transition state leading to a strained mms-fused bicy-clo[3.3.0]octane does not permit efficient overlap between the singly occupied molecular orbital (SOMO) of the radical and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) of the alkene. The relative orientation of the two side chains in the monocyclic radical precursor 134 is thus very significant because it dictates the relationship between the two outer rings (i. e. syn or anti) in the tricyclic product. The cis-anti-cis ring fusion stereochemistry of hirsutene would arise naturally from a cyclization precursor with trans-disposed side chain appendages (see 134). 

Mechanistically, it was suggested [92] that this cyclization does not involve the free a-amino radical formed by cleavage of the C—Si bond of the trimethylsilylmethyl-amine radical cation. Instead, it was pointed out that cleavage of the C—Si a-bond from the delocalized trimethylsilylmethylamine radical cation, produced by a vertical overlap of the C—Si bond and empty p-orbital of nitrogen, is assisted by the 71-orbitals of the olefin. This strategy was applied to the stereoselective synthesis of pyrrolizidine and indolizidine ring systems [93]. The synthetic utility of this reaction is also demonstrated by the synthesis of ( )-iso-retronecanol [94]. 

Free-radical cyclization reactions (i.e., the intramolecular addition of an alkyl radical to a C=C ir bond) have emerged as one of the most interesting and widespread applications of free-radical chemistry to organic synthesis. Free-radical cyclizations are useful because they are so fast. The cyclization of the 5-hexenyl radical to the cyclopentylmethyl radical is very fast, occurring at a rate of about 1.0 X 105 s-1. In fact, the rate of formation of the cyclopentylmethyl radical is much faster than the rate of cyclization to the lower energy cyclohexyl radical. This stereoelectronic effect is derived from the fact that the overlap between the p orbital of the radical and the rr MO of the double bond is much better when Cl attacks C5 than when it attacks C6. The relative rates of 5-exo and 6-endo ring closures are strongly dependent on the nature of the substrate and especially on the amount of substitution on the ir bond. Cyclization of the 6-heptenyl radical in the 6-exo mode is also very favorable. 

The ring closure of cyclic 2-but-3-enylcycloalkyl radicals (Fig. 7.3) is similar to that of the open-chain system, except that the constraints of the ring impose an almost exclusive 1,2-cis stereochemistry [3, 4]. The critical 1,5-selectivity is still largely cis, and it is this selectivity that has found the most use in the synthesis of polycyclic natural products [5, 6]. In the context of the 2-but-3-enylcyclopentyl radical cyclization, it was argued [7] that the l,5-c stereochemistry is favored because the chair-like transition structure 8a (Fig. 7.4) can achieve effective overlap between the SOMO and the radical center and the olefin n orbitals, with less strain than the other possible chair Sb. 

It appears that the main reason which can be advanced to explain both the easy cyclization and the lack of selectivity is the large bond length C-S compared to C-C, C-O , and C-N. The orthogonal overlap of the thiyl radical with the double bond will be easier but this time in either direction since the unfavorable steric interactions which hinder addition to the terminal position of the double bond will be decreased as discussed in Section III.l.B and Table 1. A complementary molecular orbital explanation has also been proposed by Baldwin because of the presence of unoccupied 3d orbitals, the sulfur atom could receive electrons (back donation) from the occupied n orbital of the double bond, which would reduce the geometric constraint for the terminal ring closure. 

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