Enolate solvation

Taking the solvation into account in such models is both very difficult and necessary for the best possible understanding of these exceedingly complex phenomena. The disolvation of the amides dimer (one solvent per lithium in THF, THF + HMPA or THF + DMPU)50 seems to be indicated, while trisolvated dimers appear relatively unstable. However, a very extensive semiempirical theoretical (MNDO) study on the various cyclic and open mixed aggregates formed by LDA and LiTMP with LiCl or three different enolates, solvated by discrete molecules of THF or HMPA, showed that general conclusions are almost impossible to draw48. A complex interplay of steric effects, induced by the partners of the aggregate and the solvent, seems to be the dominant influence on the relative stabilities of the species characterized. 

Lithium ester enolates are extremely important in polymer chemistry as initiators and active centers of the anionic polymerization of acrylic and methacrylic monomers in polar solvents. Thus, HF-SCF studies, comparable to those mentioned above, were undertaken on monomeric methyl isobutyrate (MIB) enolate210,211. The overall conclusions on the aggregation and solvation trends are exactly the same, the bent rj3-0,C mode being preferred over the rj1-O planar one by ca 3.3 kcalmol-1. While the dimeric MIB enolate solvated by four molecules of THF was found to be the enthalpically most stable aggregate, the prismatic S6 unsolvated MIB hexamer was computed as the preferred structure in non-polar solvents (Scheme 55)212. In the latter case, the supplementary oxygen of the ester acting as a side-chain ligand for the lithium seems to explain this remarkable stability. 

Several ester enolates have also been examined by X-ray crystallography. The enolates of /-butyl propionate and /-butyl 3-methylpropionate were obtained as TMEDA solvates of enolate dimers. The enolate of methyl 3,3-dimethylbutanoate was obtained as a THF-solvated tetramer. 

Fig. 7.3. Crystal structures of some lithium etiolates of ketones. (A) Unsolvated hexameric enolate of methyl t-butyl ketone (B) tetrahydrofuran solvate of tetramer of enolate of methyl r-butyl ketone (C) tetrahydrofuran solvate of tetramer of enolate of cyclopentanone (D) dimeric enolate of 3,3-dimethyl-4-(r-butyldimethylsiloxy)-2-pentanone. (Structural diagrams are reproduced from Refs. 66-69.) by permission of the American Chemical Society and Verlag Helvetica Chimica Acta AG.

The proposed intramolecular solvation is not the only feature differentiating between the polystyryl and polymethyl methacrylate salts. The former are classified as the salts of carbanions, whereas the latter are ambident salts having the character of allylic enolates with the cation interacting with the partially negatively charged carbon and oxygen atoms. The degree to which the one or the other interaction is favored is affected by the size of the cation. 

The equilibrium ratios of enolates for several ketone-enolate systems are also shown in Scheme 1.1. Equilibrium among the various enolates of a ketone can be established by the presence of an excess of ketone, which permits reversible proton transfer. Equilibration is also favored by the presence of dissociating additives such as HMPA. The composition of the equilibrium enolate mixture is usually more closely balanced than for kinetically controlled conditions. In general, the more highly substituted enolate is the preferred isomer, but if the alkyl groups are sufficiently branched as to interfere with solvation, there can be exceptions. This factor, along with CH3/CH3 steric repulsion, presumably accounts for the stability of the less-substituted enolate from 3-methyl-2-butanone (Entry 3). 

These and other related enolate ratios are interpreted in terms of a tight, reactantlike cyclic TS in THF and a looser TS in the presence of HMPA. The cylic TS favors the E-enolate, whereas the open TS favors the Z-enolate. The effect of the HMPA is to solvate the Li+ ion, reducing the importance of Li+ coordination with the carbonyl oxygen.13... 

Fig. 1.3. Potassium enolate of methyl t-butyl ketone open circles are oxygen and small circles are potassium, (a) left panel shows only the enolate structures (b) right panel shows only the solvating THF molecules. The actual structure is the superposition of both panels. Reproduced from J. Am. Chem. Soc., 108, 462 (1986), by permission of the American Chemical Society.

The introduction of an alkyl substituent at the a-carbon in the enolate enhances stereoselectivity somewhat. This is attributed to a steric effect in the enolate minimize steric interaction with the solvated oxygen, the alkyl group is d t °... 

The stereoselectivity is enhanced if there is an alkyl substituent at C(l). The factors operating in this case are similar to those described for 4-r-butylcyclohexanone. The tnms-decalone framework is conformationally rigid. Axial attack from the lower face leads directly to the chair conformation of the product. The 1-alkyl group enhances this stereoselectivity because a steric interaction with the solvated enolate oxygen distorts the enolate to favor the axial attack.57 The placement of an axial methyl group at C(10) in a 2(l)-decalone enolate introduces a 1,3-diaxial interaction with the approaching electrophile. The preferred alkylation product results from approach on the opposite side of the enolate. 

If HMPA is included in the solvent, the Z-enolate predominates.236,238 DMPU also favors the Z-enolate. The switch to the Z-enolate with HMPA or DMPU is attributed to a looser, perhaps acyclic TS being favored as the result of strong solvation of the lithium ion. The steric factors favoring the -TS are therefore diminished.239 These general principles of solvent control of enolate stereochemistry are applicable to other systems.240 For example, by changing the conditions for silyl ketene acetal formation, the diastereomeric compounds 17a and 17b can be converted to the same product with high diastereoselectivity.241... 

Although the tautomeric ratios of the 4 species have not been measured directly, it is known that in aqueous solution the keto-N2H form dominates, while the keto-NlH form is only detectable in non-polar solvents. An analysis of experimental data concluded that in aqueous solution the stability (lowest free energy) is in the order keto-N2H > imino-N2H > enol-NlH > keto-NIH. In the gas phase, calculations predict that the keto-N2H form is the least stable. While solvation is found to favour this species, which is the most polar, this stabilisation is not enough to reverse the order of stability. It is thus clearly predicted that the keto-NIH tautomer is the most stable in... 

Alkenes are scavengers that are able to differentiate between carbenes (cycloaddition) and carbocations (electrophilic addition). The reactions of phenyl-carbene (117) with equimolar mixtures of methanol and alkenes afforded phenylcyclopropanes (120) and benzyl methyl ether (121) as the major products (Scheme 24).51 Electrophilic addition of the benzyl cation (118) to alkenes, leading to 122 and 123 by way of 119, was a minor route (ca. 6%). Isobutene and enol ethers gave similar results. The overall contribution of 118 must be more than 6% as (part of) the ether 121 also originates from 118. Alcohols and enol ethers react with diarylcarbenium ions at about the same rates (ca. 109 M-1 s-1), somewhat faster than alkenes (ca. 108 M-1 s-1).52 By extrapolation, diffusion-controlled rates and indiscriminate reactions are expected for the free (solvated) benzyl cation (118). In support of this notion, the product distributions in Scheme 24 only respond slightly to the nature of the n bond (alkene vs. enol ether). The formation of free benzyl cations from phenylcarbene and methanol is thus estimated to be in the range of 10-15%. However, the major route to the benzyl ether 121, whether by ion-pair collapse or by way of an ylide, cannot be identified. 

In addition to heterocycles, other molecular systems have attracted theoretical attention with respect to prediction of tautomeric equilibria and solvation effects thereon. The most commonly studied example in this class is the equilibrium between formamide and formamidic acid, discussed in the next section. In addition, some continuum modeling of solvation effects on keto/enol equilibria have appeared these are presented in section 4.2.2.2. We note that the equilibrium... 

Vlhen the chiral methylation is carried out with 30% aqueous NaOH the indanone is deprotonated at the interface but does not precipitate as the sodium enolate (Figure 11). In this system there are 3 to 4 molecules of H2O per molecule of catalyst available while in the 50% NaOH reactions the toluene is very dry with only 1 molecule of H2O available per catalyst molecule thus forcing the formation of tight ion pairs. Solvation of the ion pairs in the toluene/30% NaOH system should decrease the ee which we indeed observe with an optimum 78% versus 94% in the 50% NaOH reaction. In the 30% NaOH reactions the ee decreases from 78% to 55% as the catalyst concentration increases from 1 mM to 16 mM (80 mM 5, 560 mM CH3CI, 20 C). Based on these ee s rates of formation of (-h)-enantiomer and racemic product can be calculated. When the log of these rates are plotted versus the log of catalyst concentrations (Figure 13) we find an order of about 0.5 in the catalyst for the chiral process similar to that found using 50% NaOH consistent with a dimer-monomer pre-equilibrium. The order in catalyst for the... 

The EAN of iron in this complex is 34, but it may be a solvated ion. Treatment of the salt with water gives 2-butanone, which was presumed to have been formed via nucleophilic attack on the cation to give a TT-allyl alcohol complex. This complex was then assumed to rearrange via the tricarbonyl hydride to an enol complex, which collapses to the ketone ... 

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