Cyclohexenes reaction + aromatics

A number of research groups have utilized the strategy outlined above to synthesize benzene ring-containing compounds. For example, Kotha successfully employed it for the synthesis of phenylalanine derivatives [36]. Starting with aUcyne 87 and the aUcene allyl acetate, cross-enyne metathesis afforded diene 88. This readily underwent a Diels-Alder reaction with dimethyl acetylenedicarboxylate (DMAD) to afford cyclohexene 89. Aromatization of these compounds with DDQ subsequently furnished the phenylalanine 90 in good yield (Scheme 17.17). 

Carless, H.A.J., Atkins, R., and Fekarurhobo, G.K., Polyoxygenated cyclohexenes from aromatic compounds selective reactions of bis(endoperoxides),/. Chem. Soc., Chem. Commun., 139,1985. 

With aromatic carbonyls, oxetane formation appears to arise from the carbonyl triplet state, as evidenced by quenching studies. For example, benzaldehyde irradiated in the presence of cyclohexene yields products indicative of hydrogen abstraction reactions and an oxetane ... 

K (277°C) and 650°K are 0.63 and 103 atm,3 respectively. Above about 350°C the equilibrium constants for this type of reaction are such that the aromatic is always highly favored thermodynamically over the corresponding cycloalkane. Moreover, olefin which is itself capable of further dehydrogenation to an aromatic (e.g., cyclohexene) is never observed in significant amounts under isomerization conditions. 

The decarbonylations, which do not appear to be affected by light, are reasonably selective with aromatic aldehydes, yielding the expected product however, significant amounts of other products are obtained with non-aromatic substrates (e.g. cyclohexane-aldehyde gives methylcyclopentane and small amounts of n-hexane, as well as the expected cyclohexane and cyclohexen-4-al gives both cyclohexene and cyclohexane). Indeed, the unexpected products perhaps provided a major clue to an understanding of the reaction mechanism(s) involved. 

Chemical catalysts for transfer hydrogenation have been known for many decades [2e]. The most commonly used are heterogeneous catalysts such as Pd/C, or Raney Ni, which are able to mediate for example the reduction of alkenes by dehydrogenation of an alkane present in high concentration. Cyclohexene, cyclo-hexadiene and dihydronaphthalene are commonly used as hydrogen donors since the byproducts are aromatic and therefore more difficult to reduce. The heterogeneous reaction is useful for simple non-chiral reductions, but attempts at the enantioselective reaction have failed because the mechanism seems to occur via a radical (two-proton and two-electron) mechanism that makes it unsuitable for enantioselective reactions [2 c]. 

The well-known Diels-Alder reaction [95,104-106] is a standard method for forming substituted cyclohexenes through the thermally allowed 4s + 2s cycloaddition of alkenes and dienes. In particular, the reaction between ethene and 1,3-butadiene to yield cyclohexene is the prototype of a Diels-Alder reaction (Scheme 28.4). It is now well recognized that this reaction takes place via a synchronous and concerted mechanism through an aromatic boatlike TS [105]. 

With the purpose of understanding the crosslinking mechanism of 1,2-polybutadiene with aromatic nitrene, we studied the reaction of phenylnitrene with unsaturated olefine monomers such as 3-methyl-1-butene and cyclohexene. These monomers are structually similar to a unit segment of 1,2-polybutadiene. 

More recently Hartog and Zwietering (103) used a bromometric technique to measure the small concentrations of olefins formed in the hydrogenation of aromatic hydrocarbons on several catalysts in the liquid phase. The maximum concentration of olefin is a function of both the catalyst and the substrate for example, at 25° o-xylene yields 0.04, 1.4, and 3.4 mole % of 1,2-dimethylcyclohexene on Raney nickel, 5% rhodium on carbon, and 5% ruthenium on carbon, respectively, and benzene yields 0.2 mole % of cyclohexene on ruthenium black. Although the cyclohexene derivatives could not be detected by this method in reactions catalyzed by platinum or palladium, a sensitive gas chromatographic technique permitted Siegel et al. (104) to observe 1,4-dimethyl-cyclohexene (0.002 mole %) from p-xylene and the same concentrations of 1,3- and 2,4-dimethylcyclohexene from wi-xylene in reductions catalyzed by reduced platinum oxide. 

In order to produce additional evidence for the above mecheuiism for aromatization over Ga203 HZSM-5 catalysts the reactions of n-hexene, 1,5 hexadiene, methylcyclopentane, methylcyclopentene, cyclohexene, cyclohexadiene at 773 K over H-2SM-5 and Ga-HZSM-5 were comparatively studied. In these exj riments low pressure and low contact were employed to observe the primary kinetic products uncomplicated by secondary reactions. The relative rates of the formation of benzene from the various hydrocarbons cited above are listed in Table 4. 

The acid-catalyzed isomerization of cycloalkenes usually involves skeletal rearrangement if strong acids are used. The conditions and the catalysts are very similar to those for the isomerization of acyclic alkenes. Many alkylcyclohexenes undergo reversible isomerization to alkylcyclopentenes. In some cases the isomerization consists of shift of the double bond without ring contraction. Side reactions, in this case, involve hydrogen transfer (disproportionation) to yield cycloalkanes and aromatics. In the presence of activated alumina cyclohexene is converted to a mixture of 1-methyl- and 3-methyl-1-cyclopentene 103... 

One of the characteristic features of the metal-catalysed reaction of acetylene with hydrogen is that, in addition to ethylene and ethane, hydrocarbons containing more than two carbon atoms are frequently observed in appreciable yields. The hydropolymerisation of acetylene over nickel—pumice catalysts was investigated in some detail by Sheridan [169] who found that, between 200 and 250°C, extensive polymerisation to yield predominantly C4 - and C6 -polymers occurred, although small amounts of all polymers up to Cn, where n > 31, were also observed. It was also shown that the polymeric products were aliphatic hydrocarbons, although subsequent studies with nickel—alumina [176] revealed that, whilst the main products were aliphatic hydrocarbons, small amounts of cyclohexene, cyclohexane and aromatic hydrocarbons were also formed. The extent of polymerisation appears to be greater with the first row metals, iron, cobalt, nickel and copper, where up to 60% of the acetylene may polymerise, than with the second and third row noble Group VIII metals. With alumina-supported noble metals, the polymerisation prod-... 

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