Cycloaddition diradicals

Fluorinated cyclobutanes and cyclobutenes are relatively easy to prepare because of the propensity of many gem-difluoroolefins to thermally cyclodimerize and cycloadd to alkenes and alkynes. Even with dienes, fluoroolefins commonly prefer to form cyclobutane rather than six-membered-ring Diels-Alder adducts. Tetrafluoroethylene, chlorotrifluoroethylene, and l,l-dichloro-2,2-difluoroethyl-ene are especially reactive in this context. Most evidence favors a stepwise diradical or, less often, a dipolar mechanism for [2+2] cycloadditions of fluoroalkenes [S5, (5], although arguments for a symmetry-allowed, concerted [2j-t-2J process persist [87], The scope, characteristic features, and mechanistic studies of fluoroolefin... 

Nonfluonnated allenes also readily react with fluoroalkenes to give diverse fluonnated alkylidenecyclobutanes [727, 12S, 129, 130] (equations 55 and 56), except for tetramelhylallene, which rearranges to 2,4-dimethyl 1,3-pentadiene under the reaction conditions prior to cycloaddition (equation 57) Systematic studies of l,l-dichloro-2,2-difluoroethylene additions to alkyl-substituted allenes establish a two-step, diradical process for alkylidenecyclobutane formation [131, 132, 133]... 

In a definitive study of butadiene s reaction with l,l-dichloro-2,2-difluoio-ethylene, Bartlett concluded that [2+4] adducts of acyclic dienes with fluorinated ethylenes are formed through a mixture of concerted and nonconcerted, diradical pathways [67] The degree of observed [2+4] cycloaddition of fluorinated ethylenes IS related to the relative amounts of transoid and cisoid conformers of the diene, with very considerable (i.e., 30%) Diels-Alder adduct being observed in competition with [2+2] reaction, for example, in the reaction of 1,1 -dichloro-2,2-difluoro-ethylene with cyclopentadiene [9, 68]... 

When buta-1,3-diene 3 is irradiated in the presence of a photosensitizer (e.g. benzophenone), the isomeric divinylcyclobutanes 6 and 7 are formed via the intermediate diradical species 4 and 5 respectively in addition the [4 + 2] cycloaddition product 4-vinylcyclohexene (see Diels-Alder reaction) is obtained as a side product ... 

Steady-state approximation product ratios. The cycloaddition reaction between ben-zyne and cis-1,2-dichloroethene proceeds to a mixture of cis and trans products according to the following scheme, in which the two diradicals are steady-state intermediates 37... 

It must be emphasized once again that the rules apply only to cycloaddition reactions that take place by cyclic mechanisms, that is, where two s bonds are formed (or broken) at about the same time. The rule does not apply to cases where one bond is clearly formed (or broken) before the other. It must further be emphasized that the fact that the thermal Diels-Alder reaction (mechanism a) is allowed by the principle of conservation of orbital symmetry does not constitute proof that any given Diels-Alder reaction proceeds by this mechanism. The principle merely says the mechanism is allowed, not that it must go by this pathway. However, the principle does say that thermal 2 + 2 cycloadditions in which the molecules assume a face-to-face geometry cannot take place by a cyclic mechanism because their activation energies would be too high (however, see below). As we shall see (15-49), such reactions largely occur by two-step mechanisms. Similarly. 2 + 4 photochemical cycloadditions are also known, but the fact that they are not stereospecific indicates that they also take place by the two-step diradical mechanism (mechanism... 

Thermal cleavage of cyclobutanesto give two alkene molecules (cyclorever-sion, the reverse of 2 -I- 2 cycloaddition) operates by the diradical mechanism, and the [ 2s -I- o2a] pathway has not been found " (the subscripts a indicate that cr bonds are involved in this reaction). 

It is possible that some of these photochemical cycloadditions take place by a lA + A] mechanism, which is of course allowed by orbital symmetry when and if they do, one of the molecules must be in the excited singlet state (5i) and the other in the ground state.The nonphotosensitized dimerizations of cis- and trans-2-butene are stereospecific,making it likely that the [n2s + n2s] mechanism is operating in these reactions. However, in most cases it is a triplet excited state that reacts with the ground-state molecule in these cases the diradical (or in certain... 

The overall pathway for the conversion of the unsaturated azido ether 281 to 2,5-dihydrooxazoles 282 involves first formation of the dipolar cycloaddition product 287, which thermolyzes to oxazoline 282 or is converted by silica gel to oxazolinoaziridine 288. While thermolysis or acid-catalyzed decomposition of triazolines to a mixture of imine and aziridine is well-documented [71,73], this chemoselective decomposition, depending on whether thermolysis or exposure to silica gel is used, is unprecedented. It is postulated that acidic surface sites on silica catalyze the triazoline decomposition via an intermediate resembling 289, which prefers to close to an aziridine 288. On the other hand, thermolysis of 287 may proceed via 290 (or the corresponding diradical) in which hydrogen migration is favored over ring closure. 

Photocycloaddition of Alkenes and Dienes. Photochemical cycloadditions provide a method that is often complementary to thermal cycloadditions with regard to the types of compounds that can be prepared. The theoretical basis for this complementary relationship between thermal and photochemical modes of reaction lies in orbital symmetry relationships, as discussed in Chapter 10 of Part A. The reaction types permitted by photochemical excitation that are particularly useful for synthesis are [2 + 2] additions between two carbon-carbon double bonds and [2+2] additions of alkenes and carbonyl groups to form oxetanes. Photochemical cycloadditions are often not concerted processes because in many cases the reactive excited state is a triplet. The initial adduct is a triplet 1,4-diradical that must undergo spin inversion before product formation is complete. Stereospecificity is lost if the intermediate 1,4-diradical undergoes bond rotation faster than ring closure. 

These results can be interpreted in terms of competition between recombination of the diradical intermediate and conformational equilibration, which would destroy the stereochemical relationships present in the azo compound. The main synthetic application of azo compound decomposition is in the synthesis of cyclopropanes and other strained-ring systems. Some of the required azo compounds can be made by 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions of diazo compounds (see Section 6.2). 

The first [2 + 2] cycloaddition of methylenecyclopropane which has been reported involves the use of tetrafluoroethylene (482) (Table 38, entry 1) [131], an olefin having a high tendency to give cycloadditions in a [2 + 2] fashion, which are considered to occur in a two-step process involving diradical intermediates. In the same article, the author reports unsuccessful attempts to react methylenecyclopropane with maleic anhydride or acrylonitrile [131]. 

Cycloadducts have been successively obtained by reaction of MCP with maleic anhydride (116) and a number of related electron-deficient alkenes (137,486,487) under photolytic conditions in the presence of a sensitizer (Table 38, entries 5-8) [132b]. Analogous cycloadditions in mild conditions with high yields have also been performed with electron-donor substituted alkenes, such as vinylene carbonates 483 and 484 and the imidazolinone 485 (entries 2-4) [132], In the case of the unsymmetrical anhydride 137 (entry 6), an almost equimolar mixture of both the possible regioisomers has been obtained [132b]. In all these cases the reaction has also been proposed to occur via diradical intermediates formed from the reaction of 1 with the alkene in its excited triplet state [132]. 

The substitution of the exo-methylene hydrogen atoms of MCP with halogens seems to favor the [2 + 2] cycloaddition reaction by stabilizing the intermediate diradical. Indeed, chloromethylenecyclopropane (96) reacts with acrylonitrile (519) to give a diastereomeric mixture of spirohexanes in good yield (Table 41, entry 2) [27], but was unreactive towards styrene and ds-stilbene. Anyway, it reacted with dienes (2,3-dimethylbutadiene, cyclopentadiene, cyc-lohexadiene, furan) exclusively in a [4 + 2] fashion (see Sect. 2.1.1) [27], while its... 

Thus BCP seems to follow two competitive pathways in the cycloaddition with dienes (i) a stepwise diradical process giving the [2 + 2] adduct, or (ii) a concerted pathway giving the [4 + 2] adduct. Accordingly, the proportion of the latter increases with the reactivity of diene in Diels-Alder reactions. Conversely, the reaction with 2,3-dicyanobutadiene (529), generated in situ by electrocyclic ring-opening of 1,2-dicyanoeyelobutene [142], furnishes selectively the [2 + 2] cycloadduct 530 (Table 42, entry 4) due to the presence of substituents able to stabilize the diradical intermediate [13b],... 

The cycloadditions in entries 1-3 are still believed to occur via a diradical stepwise pathway, as confirmed by obtaining a thermodynamic 78 22 trans/cis mixture of dispirooctanes 536 from frans-dicyanoethylene (533) (entry 3) [13b, 143], The cycloaddition to tetracyanoethylene (131) in the absence of oxygen gives only low yields of the [2 + 2] adduct, due to the simultaneous formation of products 542 and 543 (Scheme 74) [13b]. Still, the formation of the cyclobutanes 537 and 542 is noteworthy, since the reactions of TCNE with phenyl substituted MCPs exclusively afford methylenecyclopentane derivatives [37,144], The reaction is thought to occur via dipolar intermediates 539-541 formed after an initial SET process (Scheme 74) [13b]. The occurrence of intermediates 540 and 541 has been confirmed by trapping experiments [13b]. 

Numerous examples of intermolecular and intramolecular photocycloaddition to heterocyclic systems (including the dimerization of individual heterocycles) have now been reported. Two types of cycloaddition can readily be effected photochemically, namely, [n2 + 2] and [ 4 + 4] additions. Although concerted suprafacial additions of this type are allowed photochemical processes, in reality many cycloadditions occur via diradicals, zwitterions or exciplexes. 

Cycloadditions give rise to four-membered rings. Thermal concerted [2+2] cycloadditions have to be antarafacial on one component and the geometrical and orbital constraints thus imposed ensure that this process is encountered only in special circumstances. Most thermal [2+2] cycloadditions of alkenes take place by a stepwise pathway involving diradical or zwitterionic intermediates [la]. Considerably fewer studies have been performed regarding the application of microwave irradiation in [2+2] cydoadditions than for other kinds of cydoaddition (vide supra). Such reactions have been commonly used to obtain /1-lactam derivatives by cycloaddition of ketenes with imines [18-20,117,118],... 

Exciplexesn6,nl) can be formed if the excitation energy B - B is higher than the one for A -> A in (1.8). Such an excited complex is associative in the excited state only, the corresponding ground state complex between A and B being dissociative (Fig. 9). Such exciplexes are important intermediates in e.g. cycloaddition reactions as precursors of diradicals 118) which are themselves precursors of the cyclized photoproducts. 

The observation that the transition state volumes in many Diels-Alder reactions are product-like, has been regarded as an indication of a concerted mechanism. In order to test this hypothesis and to gain further insight into the often more complex mechanism of Diels-Alder reactions, the effect of pressure on competing [4 + 2] and [2 + 2] or [4 + 4] cycloadditions has been investigated. In competitive reactions the difference between the activation volumes, and hence the transition state volumes, is derived directly from the pressure dependence of the product ratio, [4 + 2]/[2 + 2]p = [4 + 2]/[2 + 2]p=i exp —< AF (p — 1)/RT. All [2 + 2] or [4 + 4] cycloadditions listed in Tables 3 and 4 doubtlessly occur in two steps via diradical intermediates and can therefore be used as internal standards of activation volumes expected for stepwise processes. Thus, a relatively simple measurement of the pressure dependence of the product ratio can give important information about the mechanism of Diels-Alder reactions. 

In another example (Scheme 8), the intramolecular cycloaddition of an azido functionality onto an enone group afforded bicyclic derivatives with bridgehead iV atoms. The cyclopentenone derivative 28 afforded the indolizidinone 30 through the proposed compound 29 which might react through a diradical intermediate or through a betaine intermediate <2002TL5385>. 

Cycloaddition reactions (see Table I) involving unsaturated carbohydrates are regio- and stereo-selective. These selectivities can be understood by assuming that the photochemical interaction between the two 7r-systems results in formation of the more stable 1,4-diradical. The reaction between 3,4,6-tri-O-acetyl-D-glucal (1) and acetone pro-... 

---