Cyclobutane ethylene dimerization

Figure 7.10 An orbital correlation diagram for ethylene dimerization. Left two widely separated ethylene molecules. Center two ethylene molecules close enough for significant interactions to occur. Right cyclobutane electron configurations correspond to the ground state for each stage.

This result suggests a stepwise mechanism. The first step is the formation of a transoid tetramethylene biradical. Then, this intermediate rotates, thereby permitting closure of the cyclobutane ring in a second step. Recent high-quality ab initio calculations [7-37] support this mechanism. The reverse of ethylene dimerization, the pyrolysis of cyclobutane, is experimentally observed [7-38]. Both quantum-chemical calculations [7-39] and thermochemical considerations [7-40] suggest that the pyrolysis proceeds through a 1,4-biradical intermediate. This shows the value of the additional information yielded by the orbital correspondence approach. 

MOs, while tlie two 7t c orbitals lead to the tt and tt MOs. In the initial stage of (he dimerization, the interaction between two ethylencs is weak so that 7t+ and tt. lie far below the n+ and tt levels, so that only 7t+ and rr are occupied. Of the a orbitals of cyclobutane described earlier, only those related to the tt., 7t1 and nl levels by symmetry are shown in Figure 11.1. Not all the occupied MOs of the reactant lead to occupied orbitals in the product. In particular, tt. correlates with one component of the empty set in cyclobutane. The tt+ combination ultimately becomes one component of the filled set in cyclobutane. So the reaction is symmetry forbidden. The reader should carefully compare the correlation diagram for ethylene dimerization here with the Ho + O2 reaction in ITgure 5.8. flie two correlation diagrams are very similar, as they should be, since in this instance the spatial dfstributions of tt and n " are similar to those of and respectively, in H2. These two reactions are probably the premier examples of symmetry-forbidden reactions. A related symmetry-allowed example is the concerted cycloaddition of ethylene and butadiene, the Diels-Alder reaction. We shall not cover the orbital symmetry rules for organic, pericyclic reactions. There are several excellent reviews that the reader should consult.But it should be pointed out that the orbital symmetry rules have stereochemical implications in terms of the reaction path and products formed. The development of these rules by Woodward and Hoffmann... 

An important aspect of tetramethylene chemistry is that similar results are seen whether the biradical is prepared by cyclobutane thermolysis, by ethylene dimerization, or by diazene photolysis. Seeing the same product ratios from different modes of preparation is one of the most stringent tests for the existence of a common reactive intermediate. 

Thermal dimerization of ethylene to cyclobutane is forbidden by orbital symmetry (Sect 3.5 in Chapter Elements of a Chemical Orbital Theory by Inagaki in this volume). The activation barrier is high E =44 kcal mof ) [9]. Cyclobutane cannot be prepared on a preparative scale by the dimerization of ethylenes despite a favorable reaction enthalpy (AH = -19 kcal mol" ). Thermal reactions between alkenes usually proceed via diradical intermediates [10-12]. The process of the diradical formation is the most favored by the HOMO-LUMO interaction (Scheme 25b in chapter Elements of a Chemical Orbital Theory ). The intervention of the diradical intermediates impfies loss of stereochemical integrity. This is a characteric feature of the thermal reactions between alkenes in the delocalization band of the mechanistic spectrum. 

Application of CM theory to explain pericyclic reactions was first attempted by Epiotis and coworkers (Epiotis, 1972, 1973, 1974 Epiotis and Shaik, 1978b Epiotis et al 1980). The following analysis is a much-simplified treatment of that approach. Let us compare, therefore, the CM analysis for the [4 + 2] allowed cycloaddition of ethylene to butadiene to give cyclohexene with the [2 + 2] forbidden dimerization of two ethylenes to give cyclobutane. For simplicity only the suprafacial-suprafacial approach is considered, although this simplification in no way weakens the argument. 

The concept of the conservation of orbital symmetry can be extended to intermolecular cycloaddition reactions which occur in a concerted manner. The simplest case is the dimerization of ethylene molecules to give cyclobutane, the 2n + 2je cycloaddition. The proper geometry for the concerted action would be for the two ethylene molecules to orient one over the other. Two planes of symmetry are thereby set up -perpendicular to the molecular plane bisecting the bond axes oy-parallel to the molecular plane lying in between the two molecules (Figure 8.10). 

The most commonly observed dimerization is that of alkenes to form cyclobutane derivatives. Nonconjugated alkenes such as cyclopentene and norbornene are dimerized in the presence of a sensitizer, whereas conjugated alkenes dimerize directly dimerizations of the second type have been observed in dienes, phenyl-ethylenes, and a,/9-unsaturated carbonyl, cyano, and nitro derivatives. The precise structure and stereochemistry of many of these dimers is uncertain, although it is known to be influenced by the solvent, by the presence and nature of substituents, and by the use of a sensitizer. The structures of dimers formed in solid-state irradiations are often determined by crystal structure. 

The six-membered ring 85 is obtained from the allylamine 84 [31]. The sulfur-containing ring 87 was obtained from 86 using the Mo catalyst. The Ru catalyst is not active for this reaction [32]. The (S, f )-chromene derivative 89 was obtained in 97% yield by the Mo-catalysed intramolecular metathesis of (S,f )-cycloheptenyl styrenyl ether 88 under an atmosphere of ethylene. In the absence of ethylene, 89 and its dimer were obtained. The enantioselective total synthesis of (.S, / ,/ , / )-ncbivoIoI (90) has been carried out from 89 [33]. No cyclization of the cyclopentene 91 was observed, because the highly strained cyclobutane intermediate 92 is difficult to form. 

In examining the cycloalkenes, one must first recognize that a double bond has considerable inherent strain. For example, the dimerization of ethylene to give cyclobutane is fairly exothermic (—18 kcal mol" ) and if there were a way to readily overcome orbital symmetry restrictions, cyclobutane would be a very common reagent. However, in the following, we will take the conventional view that ethylene is unstrained. Then, in comparing cycloalkanes and cycloalkenes it is helpful to define olefinic strain (OS) as the difference in strain between the alkene and the corresponding alkane ... 

The orbital correlation diagram for the concerted dimerization of ethylene to form cyclobutane or for the reverse reaction, the fragmentation of cyclobutane into two ethylenes, may be obtained most easily by applying the principle of conservation of orbital symmetry. A mirror plane perpendicular to the molec-... 

As a suitable reaction we selected 2n + 2n) photocycloaddition as demonstrated by Schmidt, disubstituted ethylenes, appropriately oriented in the crystal and with the double bonds at a distance 4 A, form on u.v. irradiation cyclobutane dimers with a stereochemistry that directly reflects the symmetry relating the monomers in the mother phase (topochemical dimerization). Subsequently, Hasegawa and Naka-nishi have demonstrated that, when the double bonds are appropriately oriented and spaced, symmetrical disubstituted / -distyryl derivatives undergo, by the same mechanism, topochemical solid-state photopolymerization. 

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