Enol species

Only the potentially 2,4-dihydroxy derivatives of furan and thiophene are known and these exist in the solid state and in polar solvents as the monoenols (82) (71T3839). However, in non-polar solvents the furan derivatives exist predominantly in the dioxo form (83). The 2,5-dioxo structure (84) is well established for X=0, NR, S and Se (71BSF3547) and there is no evidence for intervention of any enolic species. The formal tautomer (85) of succinimide has been prepared and is reasonably stable (62CI(L)1576). 

Besides the aldol reaction in the true sense, there are several other analogous reactions, where some enolate species adds to a carbonyl compound. Such reactions are often called aldol-type reactions the term aldol reaction is reserved for the reaction of aldehydes and ketones. 

Extension of this aldol reactivity to the preparation of chiral materials via condensation reactions of the chiral enolate species 2 and 3 is discussed in the following sections. 

A powerful variation of the iron acetyl enolate aldol reaction utilizes the cnolate of complex 8 which bears a (pentafluorophenyl)diphenylphosphane ligand in place of the more usual triphenylphosphane47. The enolate species 9. prepared by treatment of 8 with lithium diiso-propylamide, reacts at — 78 °C with benzaldehyde to produce the aldol adduct 10 with a d.r. of 98.5 1.5. 

The selectivity for (/ ,/ )( ,S)-10 has been rationalized by invoking a synperiplanar enolate species whose conformation is enforced by a donor(enolate oxygen)- acceptor) peril uo-rophenyl) interaction depicted in structure N47. Infrared and variable temperature NMR spectroscopic studies of the neutral precursor complex 8 support the existence of such a donor-acceptor interaction. 

Aldol reactions of a-substituted iron-acetyl enolates such as 1 generate a stcrcogenic center at the a-carbon, which engenders the possibility of two diastereomeric aldol adducts 2 and 3 on reaction with symmetrical ketones, and the possibility of four diastereomeric aldol adducts 4, 5, 6, and 7 on reaction with aldehydes or unsymmetrical ketones. The following sections describe the asymmetric aldol reactions of chiral enolate species such as 1. 

Conducting the aldol reaction at temperatures below —78 "C increases the diastereoselectivity, but at the cost of reduced yields45. Transmetalation of the lithium enolate 2 a by treatment with diethylaluminum chloride generated an enolate species that provided high yields of aldol products, however, the diastereoselectivity was as low as that of the lithium species45. Pre treatment of the lithium enolate 2a with tin(II) chloride, zinc(II) chloride, or boron trifluoridc suppressed the aldol reaction and the starting iron-acyl complex was recovered. 

Transmetalation of 19 by treatment with two equivalents of diethylaluminum chloride generates the aluminum enolate species 23. The latter reacts with acetaldehyde to produce the stable aluminum aldolates 24 which do not undergo the Peterson elimination23. A protic quench then provides the a-silylated aldol adducts of tentative structures (2 R)-25 and (2 V)-25 with little diastereoselectivity. Other diastereomers are not observed. 

Although carbanionic and enolate species are most often sulfinylated using sulfinate esters, particularly homochiral ester 19, other tricoordinate S(IV) compounds may be used in their place. Sulfinamides (66) and cyclic sulfite ester-amides (67) are two examples of such compounds. 

Schlessinger and coworkers described a conjugate addition of enolate species to ketene dithioacetal monoxides656 (equation 357). Some of the products obtained were elaborated to dihydrojasmone657, prostaglandins658 and rethrolones659. 

Enolisation of ketones is favoured in alkanol solution, and the observed solvent specificity in this reaction may indicate that the formation of the enolic species C is favoured when ethanol is used as solvent. 

Whilst the addition of a chiral NHC to a ketene generates a chiral azolium enolate directly, a number of alternative strategies have been developed that allow asymmetric reactions to proceed via an enol or enolate intermediate. For example, Rovis and co-workers have shown that chiral azolium enolate species 225 can be generated from a,a-dihaloaldehydes 222, with enantioselective protonation and subsequent esterification generating a-chloroesters 224 in excellent ee (84-93% ee). Notably, in this process a bulky acidic phenol 223 is used as a buffer alongside an excess of an altemativephenoliccomponentto minimise productepimerisation (Scheme 12.48). An extension of this approach allows the synthesis of enantiomericaUy emiched a-chloro-amides (80% ee) [87]. 

This reaction sequence of conjugate reduction followed by aldol reaction is known as the reductive aldol reaction. In certain instances, reductive elimination from the M-TM-enolate species may occur to furnish M-enolate, which itself may participate in the aldol reaction (Scheme 3). This detour may be described as the background path or stepwise path in one-pot. Indeed, it has been reported that certain cationic Rh complexes such as [Rh(COD)(DPPB)] (COD = 1,5-cyclooctadiene, DPPB = diphenylphosphinobutane) catalyze the aldol reactions of silyl enol ethers and carbonyl compounds by serving as Lewis acids [5-8]. 

The aldol reactions introduced thus far have been performed under basic conditions where enolate species are involved as the reactive intermediate. In contrast to the commonly accepted carbon-anion chemistry, Mukaiyama developed another practical method in which enol species can be used as the key intermediates. He is the first chemist to successfully demonstrate that acid-catalyzed aldol reactions using Lewis acid (such as TiCU) and silyl enol ether as a stable enol equivalent can work as well.17 Furthermore, he developed the boron tri-fluoromethane sulfonate (triflate)-mediated aldol reactions via the formation of formyl enol ethers. 

With chiral enol species (/ )-silylketene acetal derived from (1 R,2S)-N-methyl ephedrine-O-propionate, both the aldehyde carbonyl and the ephedrine NMe2 group are expected to bind to TiCU, which usually chelates two electron-donating molecules to form ra-octahedral six-coordinated complexes.25 Conformational freedom is therefore reduced, and the C-C bond formation occurs on the six-coordinated metal in a highly stereoselective manner.18... 

As shown in Figure 3-2, titanium is coordinated with the oxygen from both the aldehyde and the alkene enol silyl ether. When aldehyde approaches the enol species, intermediate A is favored to B, and anti-aldol is obtained as the major product. Table 3-4 presents some results of these reactions. 

The carbomethoxy cycle starts with the attack of a methoxy group at a coordinated carbonyl group or a migratory insertion of CO in a palladium methoxy bond. Any type of methoxy species will have a low concentration in the acidic medium of the reaction. In Figure 12.20 many details of these reactions, discussed above in section 12.2, have been omitted and only a shorthand notation is presented. Subsequently insertion of ethene takes place. It is known from stoichiometric experiments that both reactions are relatively slow. In the final step a formal protonation takes place, which as we saw before, may actually involve enolate species. 

Another very important visible light-initiated reaction of alkyl aluminum porphyrins is their 1,4-addition to alkyl methacrylates to produce ester enolate species [Eq. (4)]. This enolate then acts as the active species in the subsequent polymerization of the acrylate monomer. For example, Al(TPP)Me acts as a photocatalyst to produce polymethylmethacrylate with a narrow molecular weight distribution in a living polymerization process [Eq. (4)]. Visible light is essential for both the initiation step (addition of methylmethacrylate to Al(TPP)Me) and the propagation... 

Lithiation of 2-biphenylcyclohexanone gave two enolate species in THF one an unconjugated secondary enolate and the other a conjugated tertiary enolate. The former exists dominantly as the tetramer and the latter as a monomer-dimer mixture. In both cases the monomer reacts faster than the aggregates with alkylating substrates. ... 

Propagation proceeds through an enolate species in the bimetallic mechanism described by Eq. 8-73 in which two metallocene species are involved—one is a neutral enolate, and the other is the corresponding metallocenium cation [Collins et al., 1994 Li et al., 1997]. In LV, the propagating chain is coordinated at the neutral transition metal center (Zr3) and monomer... 

Treatment of lithium enolate species, such as 7, with a variety of metal halide species produces enolates with different reactivities in particular, diethylaluminum(IH) and copper(I) species have been found to profoundly alter stereodifferentiation in reactions of iron acyl enolates (see Section D.1.3.4.2.5.1.). It has not been established whether complex formation or discrete ti ansmetalation occurs usually, a temperature increase from — 78 °C to — 42 °C is required for maximum effect, suggesting that cation exchange is responsible. In some cases, such additives exert an influence at —78 °C13, and this has been attributed to simple Lewis acid-type interactions with the substrate instead of transmetalation of the enolate species. For simplicity, when such additives are allowed to react with enolate species at temperatures of — 42 =C and above prior to the addition of other reagents, the process shall be referred to as transmetalation. 

Treatment of the potentially electrophilic Z-xfi-unsaturated iron-acyl complexes, such as 1, with alkyllithium species or lithium amides generates extended enolate species such as 2 products arising from 1,2- or 1,4-addition to the enone functionality are rarely observed. Subsequent reaction of 2 with electrophiles results in regiocontrolled stereoselective alkylation at the a-position to provide j8,y-unsaturated products 3. The origin of this selective y-deproto-nation is suggested to be precoordination of the base to the acyl carbonyl oxygen (see structures A), followed by proton abstraction while the enone moiety exists in the s-cis conformation23536. 

Reaction of Z-a./j-unsaturated iron-acyl complexes with bases under conditions similar to those above results in exclusive 1,4-addition, rather than deprotonation, to form the extended enolate species. However, it has been demonstrated that in the presence of the highly donating solvent hexamethylphosphoramide, y-deprotonation of the -complex 6 occurs. Subsequent reaction with electrophiles provides a-alkylated products such as 736 this procedure, demonstrated only in this case, in principle allows access to the a-alkylatcd products from both Z- and it-isomers of a,/j-unsaturated iron-acyl complexes. The hexamethylphosphoramide presumably coordinates to the base and thus prevents precoordination of the base to the acyl carbonyl oxygen, which has been suggested to direct the regioselective 1,4-addition of nucleophiles to -complexes as shown (see Section 1.1.1.3.4.1.2.). These results are also consistent with preference for the cisoid conformations depicted. 

Iron acyl complexes bearing an a,/ -unsaturated acyl ligand possess multiple sites of electrophilic reactivity. Strong bases may be induced to react with the acyl ligand, and in Section 1.1.1.3.4.1.1. the chemoselective y-deprotonation of Z-a,/i-unsaturated acyl ligands to generate enolate species was addressed. The profoundly different reactivity of the unsubstituted complex 1 and E-a,/ -unsaturated acyl complexes, such as 2, is discussed here. 

The effect of variation of the counterion or phosphane ligand on the alkylation of these extended enolates remains unexplored. Electrophiles that have been successfully reacted with extended enolate species to generate new C —C bonds are limited to primary iodoalkanes and (bromomethyl)benzene (see Table 8)71. 

Treatment of -a,/ -unsaturated iron-acyl complexes, such as 33, with alkyllithinms or lithium amides results in exclusive diastereoselective 1,4-nucleophilic addition to generate the elaborated enolate species 34 (see Houben-Weyl, Volume 13/9a, p416, and Section 1.1.1.3.4.1.2.)... 

Electrophiles that have been used for the second alkylation of this tandem Michael addition -alkylation sequence are limited to primary iodoalkanes, (bromomethyl)benzenes and 3-bromo-propenes. Tables 9 and 10 provide details of the alkylations of enolate species prepared by 1,4-additions of -a,/j-unsaturated iron-acyl complexes by anionic carbon nucleophiles and anionic nitrogen nucleophiles, respectively. 

General methods for the preparation of a.jS-unsaturated iron-acyl complexes are deferred to Section D 1.3.4.2.5.1.1. examples of the alkylation of enolates prepared via Michael additions to ii-0 ,/ -unsaturated complexes prepared in situ are included here. Typical reaction conditions for these one-pot processes involve the presence of an excess of alkyllithium or lithium amide which first acts as base to promote elimination of alkoxide from a /f-alkoxy complex to generate the -a,)S-unsaturated complex which then suffers 1,4-nucleophilic addition by another molecule of alkyllithium or lithium amide. The resulting enolate species is then quenched with an electrophile in the usual fashion. The following table details the use of butyllithium and lithium benzylamide for these processes44,46. 

Deprotonation of complex 1 with butyllithium at — 78 °C generates the enolate species 2 (described in Section 1.1.1.3.4.1.1.), which reacts with electrophiles while in the anti conformation (acyl oxygen anti to carbon monoxide oxygen). Enolate 2 is inert to 1,2-epoxypropane (3a) at — 78 °C, but in the presence of a Lewis acid, rapid reaction ensues leading to preferred alkylation of the least hindered site of the epoxide13. Reaction of the enolate 2, derived from the racemic complex 1, with racemic monosubstituted epoxides results in preferential formation of one of two possible diastereomers this can be termed a double enantiomer-differentiating reaction. 

Enolate species 6, derived from 1-oxopropyl complex 5, reacts similarly with monosubstituted epoxides. Under the influence of diethylaluminum chloride, only the diastereomers 7 and 8 were observed in the reaction mixture 7 was the major product. The use of boron trifluoride - diethyl ether complex instead of diethylaluminum chloride caused a complete loss of stereocontrol at C , producing a 50 50 mixture of diastereomers 7 and 8, but stereocontrol at C was retained as no other diastereomers were produced. The major diastereomer produced is consistent with the intermediacy of a transition state like that represented in Newman projection C which has the usual anti-E-snolate geometry and lacks the R methyl gauche interaction of structure D. 

The cyclic cobalt-acyl complex 1 undergoes a-proton abstraction from the least-hindered face opposite the phosphane ligand upon treatment with lithium hexamethyldisilazide at 0 °C to generate the chiral enolate species 283. Treatment of 2 with primary iodoalkanes diastereoselec-tively produces the alkylated cobaltocycles 3 also via attack of the reagent on the face opposite the bulky phosphane. 

However, the more hindered, less basic lithium hexamethyldisilazamide reacts slowly with 1 at 0 °C to provide chemoselectively the desired enolate species 5. The a-protons of these rhenium-acyl complexes are believed to have a lower pKa than the cyclopentadienyl protons, but unless treated with hulky, selective hases the cyclopentadienyl protons exhibit greater kinetic acidity due to statistical factors and an earlier, reactant-like transition state since minimal rchybridiza-tion is required at the anionic center after cyclopentadienyl deprotonation. Equilibration of the cyclopentadienyl anion to the thermodynamically more stable enolate species cannot compete with the rapid acyl migration84. 

Hydridotris(3,5-dimethyl-l-pyrazolyl)borate]molybdenum-(i72-acyl) complexes, such as 1, are deprotonated by butyllithium or potassium hydride to generate enolate species, such as 488.8> jjie overa]] structure of these chiral complexes is similar to that of the iron and rhenium complexes discussed earlier the hydridotris(3,5-dimethyl-l-pyrazolyl)borate ligand is iso valent to the cyclopentadienyl ligand, occupying three metal coordination sites. However, several important differences must be taken into account when a detailed examination of the stereochemical outcome of deprotonation-alkylation processes is undertaken. 

Related, achiral cc,/ -unsaturated molybdenum-( 2-acyl) complexes, such as 8, have been shown to undergo nucleophilic 1,4-conjugatc addition upon treatment with sodium borohy-dride or methyllithium to generate enolate species, such as 9 (produced by addition of hydride). Subsequent alkylation by iodomethane provides the a-alkylated product 1088. Extension of this tandem Michael addition-alkylation sequence to nonracemic molybdenum species has not yet been reported. 

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