Cyclobutanone oximes, Beckmann

Examples of the Beckmann rearrangement of cyclobutanone oximes are given in Table 2. 

The fused cyclobutane derivatives produced via the above cycloaddition reactions have been utilized as synthetic precursors for the preparation of indole-2-acetonitriles (Scheme 6) [23]. First, the acetyl-substituted cyclobutanes 28 were converted to the cyclobutanone derivatives 29, which were in turn treated with hydroxylamine to provide the corresponding oximes. Beckmann fission of oximes 30 in the presence of thionyl chloride then produced the l-benzoylindole-2-aceto-nitrile derivatives 31 in good yield. 

Cyclobutane.—Further reports of grandisol (90) synthesis include Magnus s full paper (Vol. 6, p. 22) and an almost identical Japanese report of an earlier synthesis (Vol. 3, p. 25) based upon a dihydropyranone-ethylene cycloaddition.A third synthesis utilizes cyclopropanation of 4-methoxy-3,6,6-trimethylcyclohexa-2,4-dienone to yield (91) followed by rearrangement of the a-oxycyclopropylcarbinyl cation of (91) to (92). After reduction of the cyclobutanone, second-order Beckmann cleavage of the cyclopentanone oxime gave (93) from which grandisol (90) was readily obtained. 

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