Cyclic diazo compounds

In the discussion on the structure of the aliphatic diazo compounds, the question of the existence of isomeric diazo compounds with three-membered rings was never considered. It wms therefore a surprise when the cyclic diazo compounds, i.e. the diazirines, became known their preparation wms published independently by Paulsen and by Schmitz and Ohme. ... 

The cyclic diazo compounds (diazirines 65) are very unreactive compounds. Specially noticeable is the absence of the reactivity toward electrophilic reagents which is characteristic of the linear isomers. Acids or aldehydes which react smoothly with the aliphatic diazo compounds are without action on the cyclic diazo compounds. Iodine does not attack the cyclic diazo compounds. 

The proof of the three-membered structure of the diazirines concludes the discussion on the three-membered ring structure of the aliphatic diazo compounds. The knowm linear aliphatic diazo compounds and the newly prepared cyclic diazo compounds (diazirines) are two independent classes of compounds completely different in their physical and chemical properties. An interconversion of the linear and cyclic diazo compounds has not so far been possible. 

B. Ring expansion of cyclic ketones using diazo compounds... 

It was demonstrated (83) that the reaction of dinitrostyrenes (28) with aryl diazo compounds RR CN2 afford nitronates (24 g) in good yields. These products contain the nitro group at the C-4 atom in the trans position with respect to the substituent at C-5 (if R =H). Since the reaction mechanism remains unknown, the direct formation of cyclic nitronates (24 g) from pyrazolines A without the intermediate formation of cyclopropanes also cannot be ruled out. 

Diazirines are the cyclic isomers of the alphatic diazo compounds. Both the diaziridines and the diazirines are starting materials for the synthesis of alkyl hydrazines. 3,3-Pentamethyl-enediaziridine can be hydrolyzed quantitatively to hydrazine. Methylamine may be substituted for ammonia in the procedure resulting in l-methyl-3,3-pentamethylenediaziridine (m.p. 35-36°, yield 62% of theoretical) and then methyl hydrazine. Use of ethylenediamine leads to ethylene bis-hydrazine via a bifunctional diaziridine (m.p. 143-144°, yield 48% of theoretical). Ammonia can also be replaced by w-propylamine or cydo-hexylamine cyclohexanone by acetone. 

Insertion of the carbenes, via a low-lying singlet state close to the ground-state triplet, generated by photolysis of the diazo compounds (128), into the CO bond of cyclic ether solvents (THF, THP, dioxane) gave rise to polyether-bridged azulenes such as (129). ... 

The diazirine precursors of carbenes (entry 3 in Table 10.3) are cyclic isomers of diazo compounds. The strain of the small ring and the potential for formation of nitrogen make them highly reactive on photoexcitation. They are, in general, somewhat less easily available than diazo compounds or arenesulfonylhydrazones. However, there are several useful synthetic routes.86 87 88... 

The preparation of thiiranes is most conveniently performed in solution. However, there are also protocols reported for reaction in the gas and solid phase. By using diazo and thiocarbonyl compounds in ether as solvent, both alkyl and aryl substituted thiiranes are accessible. As indicated earlier, aryl substituents destabilize the initially formed 2,5-dihydro-1,3,4-thiadiazole ring and, in general, thiiranes are readily obtained at low temperature (13,15,35). On the other hand, alkyl substituents, especially bulky ones, enhance the stability of the initial cycloadduct, and the formation of thiiranes requires elevated temperatures (36 1,88). Some examples of sterically crowded thiiranes prepared from thioketones and a macro-cyclic diazo compound have been published by Atzmiiller and Vbgtle (106). Diphenyldiazomethane reacts with (arylsulfonyl)isothiocyanates and this is followed by spontaneous N2 elimination to give thiirane-2-imines (60) (107,108). Under similar conditions, acyl-substituted isothiocyanates afforded 2 1-adducts 61 (109) (Scheme 5.23). It seems likely that the formation of 61 involves a thiirane intermediate analogous to 60, which subsequently reacts with a second equivalent... 

In an earlier survey of the cycloaddition chemistry of diazo compounds with imines (5), it was noted that diazoalkanes react particularly well with both electron-deficient acyclic and strained cyclic imines, such as 27/-azirines, producing... 

The Cu(I)-catalyzed decomposition of (alkynyloxysilyl)diazoacetates 119 furnishes the silaheterocycles 120 and/or 121 (equation 30) in modest yield63. In these cases, the photochemical extrusion of nitrogen from 119 does not lead to defined products and the thermal reaction is dominated by the 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition ability of these diazo compounds. In mechanistic terms, carbene 122 or more likely a derived copper carbene complex, is transformed into cyclopropene 123 by an intramolecular [1 + 2] cycloaddition to the triple bond. The strained cyclopropene rearranges to a vinylcarbene either with an exo-cyclic (124) or an endocyclic (125) carbene center, and typical carbene reactions then lead to the observed products. Analogous carbene-to-carbene rearrangements are involved in carbenoid transformations of other alkynylcarbenes64. 

Both silene isomers 278 and 279 are ideal precursors for the generation of silylene 284, since their interconversion to 284 is spontaneous (in the case of 278) or can be easily induced by irradiation (in the case of 279). There are numerous well-established methods to prepare transient silylenes 279. Three important examples are shown in equation 69, namely the photolytic generation from a trisilane 280153, thermolytic or photolytic decomposition of cyclic silanes 28114,154,155 and degradation of diazidosilanes 282153,156. The photolysis of the diazido silane 282 is an especially clean reaction which has been used in several spectroscopic studies157. The photolysis of w-diazo compounds 283 is the only frequently used reaction path to silenes 284 via a carbene-silene rearrangement8. 

The photolysis of unsaturated cyclic silyldiazoalkanes has also been employed as a route to several silaaromatic compounds such as silabenzenes and silafulvenes. Markl and coworkers showed that the diazo compound 285 was converted on photolysis at <385 nm to the silafulvene 286139 and that photolysis of the diazo compound 287 led to the sil-abenzene 288140. Each of the processes involved a 1,2-shift of a group from silicon to carbon. Earlier, Ando and coworkers141 had shown that photolysis of the silacyclopenta-dienyldiazomethane 289 led to the formation of both a silabenzene 290 and a silafulvene 291 (Scheme 51). 

Diazo Components With Two Different Cationic Residues. Mono- and disazo dyes have been prepared in which the diazo compound carries at least two different basic and/or cationic groups.Reaction of 2,4- or 2,5-diaminobenzene sulfonic acids with 2-chloro-l,3,5-triazines that are substituted in positions 4 and 6 by aminoalk-ylamines and cyclic ammonium alkylamines, respectively, leads to diazo compo-... 

Cyclic diazo compounds are known to form mononuclear cr-complexes with iron carbonyl compounds, which further react to give more stable binuclear complexes containing an Fe-Fe bond <1976TCC105>. However, such complexes are rare in the case of cyclic four-membered diazo compounds. No new examples have been reported in the last decade. For more informations, CHEC-II(1996) should be consulted <1996CHEC-II(1B)911>. 

Substitution of the acetate group at the C-3 position of the /3-sultam 105 can occur by reaction with silyl enol ethers in the presence of zinc iodide or zinc chloride. When the diazo compound is used, after desilylation with tetrabutyl-ammonium fluoride (TBAF), photochemical cyclization gives the bicyclic /3-sultam 106 as a mixture of two cis/ fra -diastereoisomers. When silyl enol ethers derived from cyclic ketones are used, the substitution product is stabilized by a retro-Michael-type reaction leading to open-chained sulfonamides 107 (Scheme 31) <1997LA1261>. 

The enol acetate moiety in diketene can be utilized for cyclopropane formation. Unfortunately, with most diazo compounds, yields are rather moderate 29), and therefore the synthetic value of methods developed on this basis is restricted. As exemplified by the ethyl diazoacetate adduct 44 (Scheme 4) the ring opening of this masked tricarbonyl compound can lead to different classes of acyclic or cyclic products. The outcome of these reactions depends on the conditions employed. They simultaneously transform the P-ketoester unit present in 44 29b). 

The loss of CO, S, SO, SO2, SO3, and N2 by thermolysis or photolysis has been used to make three- and four-membered rings for example, the cyclic sulfamidate 94 undergoes clean thermolysis at 70 C to form the vinyl aziridine 95 in excellent yield <2002T5979, CHEC-III(1.01.6.5)79> and Wolff rearrangement of diazo compounds 96 gives -lactams 97 (Scheme 51) <1973J(P1)2024>. 

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