Diazonium ions vinylation

This seeming unreactivity of vinyl halides in solvolytic processes and the lack of availability of more reactive precursors, such as sulfonate esters, until recently has discouraged early attempts at mechanistic investigations of vinyl cations generated by solvolyses. However, vinyl cations have been generated via vinyl diazonium ions derived from various precursors. 

One of the first reports involving vinyl diazonium ions and possible vinyl cations is the work of Newman and co-workers (107) on the alkaline decomposition of 3-nitroso-2-oxazolidones, 132. When an aqueous suspension or... 

A number of miscellaneous reactions involving diazonium ions and possible vinyl cations have been reported. Treatment of amine 138 with sodium nitrite in 20% aqueous acetic acid is reported to give methyl cyclopropyl ketone as one of four products (116). The reaction has been postulated to involve a vinyl cation, presumably by the following sequence of reactions (116) ... 

In all of the above cases involving decompositions of vinyl diazonium ions, the observed products are consistent with a vinyl cation formulation, but extensive mechanistic studies of these reactions have not been reported. It is difficult, for instance, to establish to what extent reaction proceeds through the diazonium ion via a backside nucleophilic attack and concerted loss of nitrogen rather than through the free vinyl cation. In the absence of kinetic data, it is also difficult to rule out competing or alternative mechanisms not involving vinyl cations. 

The elusive diazoalkenes 6 and 14 are unlikely to react with methanol as their basicity should be comparable to that of diphenyldiazomethane. However, since the formation of diazonium ions cannot be rigorously excluded, the protonation of vinylcarbenes was to be confirmed with non-nitrogenous precursors. Vinyl-carbenes are presumedly involved in photorearrangements of cyclopropenes.21 In an attempt to trap the intermediate(s), 30 was irradiated in methanol. The ethers 32 and 35 (60 40) were obtained,22 pointing to the intervention of the al-lylic cation 34 (Scheme 10). Protonation of the vinylcarbene 31 is a likely route to 34. However, 34 could also arise from protonation of photoexcited 30, by way of the cyclopropyl cation 33. The photosolvolysis of alkenes is a well-known reaction which proceeds according to Markovnikov s rule and is, occasionally, associated with skeletal reorganizations.23 Therefore, cyclopropenes are not the substrates of choice for demonstrating the protonation of vinylcarbenes. 

Most of the salts capable of polymerising the vinyl monomers already described are also efficient initiators of cyclic monomer polymerisations, but in addition appropriate salts of more stable species such as oxonium, sulphonium and diazonium ions... 

The phenyl cation (134) firstpostulated by Waters335 is a highly reactive species oflow stability and plays a fundamental role in organic chemistry—for example, in the chemistry of diazonium ions. According to gas-phase studies and calculations, its stability is between that of the ethyl cation and the vinyl cation.336 Since it is an extremely electrophilic and short-lived species, it could not be isolated or observed directly in the condensed phase. For example, solvolytic and dediazoniation studies under superacidic conditions by Faali et al.337,338 failed to find evidence of the intermediacy of the phenyl cation. Hyperconjugative stabilization via orf/zo-Me3Si or... 

Curtin et al. (1965) tried to prove the existence of vinyl diazonium ions, which were thought to be of intermediate stability between that of aliphatic and aromatic diazonium ions from obvious considerations. However, the authors attempts to intercept these intermediates in the deamination of vinylamine failed. ... 

Convincing evidence that vinyl cations, possibly resulting from diazonium ion precursors, are the actual intermediates of the acid-catalysed decomposition of l-aryl-3-vinyl triazene derivatives 112 (equation 20) has been discussed by Jones and Miller (1967). 

Catalysis (initiation) by a free radical, on the other hand, is fairly conclusive evidence of a radical reaction, provided it is known that the catalyst is indeed a free radical and that it does not have pronounced polar properties as well. Many classes of compound once thought to decompose exclusively into ions or exclusively into radicals are now known to do both. Peroxides are one well-known example, AT-halo-amides are another. Catalysis by benzoyl peroxide probably does indicate a radical reaction since there is no evidence that this particular peroxide tends to give ions even under the most favorable conditions. But many other peroxides are known to decompose into ions, or at least ion pairs, as well as into radicals. The decomposition of azo compounds can also be either radical or ionic, the dialkyl azo compounds tending to give radicals, the diazonium compounds either radicals or ions. Catalysis by a borderline example of an azo compound would therefore be dubious evidence of either kind of mechanism. The initiation of the polymerization of octyl vinyl ether by triphenylmethyl chloride in polar... 

Macrae and Wright (96) demonstrated that visible light irradiation of xanthene dyes (eosin, erythrosin, rhodamine B, or RB) in ethanolic solutions of 4-(N,N-diethylamino)benzene-diazonium chloride (as the zinc chloride double salt) resulted in decomposition of the diazonium salt. Electron transfer from the dye excited state(s) to the diazonium salt was postulated and dye-diazonium salt ion pair formation in the ground state was shown to be important. Similar dyes and diazonium salts were claimed by Cerwonka (97) in a photopolymerization process in which vinyl monomers (vinylpyrrolidone, bis(acrylamide)) were crosslinked by visible light. Initiation occurs by the sequence of reactions in eqs. 40-42 ... 

There is now abundant evidence for the homolytic decomposition of covalent azo- and diazo-compounds of many types, but evidence for one-electron transfer reactions of diazonium salts is very scanty. Cooper (4) and Marvel ( ) have shown that reduction of diazonium salts by ferrous ions can initiate.vinyl polymerization, while Kornblum s work ( ) has shown that the reduction of diazonium salts by hypophosphite is promoted by oxidizing agents in a manner indicative of the chain reaction ... 

The material can be converted to diazonium salts and then decon x)sed with ferrous ions in the presence of some vinyl monomers to form graft copolymers. Aciylonitrile forms graft copolymer readily without formation of any homopolymers. Styrene and vinyl acetate, however, do not A modification of this technique is to conduct the diazotization reaction in the presence of emulsifiers. The amounts of graft copolymers that form with acrylic and methacrylic monomers and A vinylpyrrolidone depend upon the nature and pH of the emulsifiers, the reaction time, and the temperature. 

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