Enolates, ionic alkylation

The cyclobutene 14 used a few pages back in a cycloaddition was actually made by an ionic reaction from adipic acid 34. Double bromination of the acid chloride and quenching with methanol gives 35 that cyclises12 to 14 with NaH. Presumably one enolate is alkylated by the other bromide and then the second enolate eliminates 36 to give 14. 

At the first step, the insertion of MMA to the lanthanide-alkyl bond gave the enolate complex. The Michael addition of MMA to the enolate complex via the 8-membered transition state results in stereoselective C-C bond formation, giving a new chelating enolate complex with two MMA units one of them is enolate and the other is coordinated to Sm via its carbonyl group. The successive insertion of MMA afforded a syndiotactic polymer. The activity of the polymerization increased with an increase in the ionic radius of the metal (Sm > Y > Yb > Lu). Furthermore, these complexes become precursors for the block co-polymerization of ethylene with polar monomers such as MMA and lactones [215, 217]. 

One of the most important factors for successful diastereoselection in chiral amide enolate alkylation reactions is the presence of strongly chelated ionic intermediates1 3. The chelation serves the purpose of locking the chiral auxiliary in a fixed position relative to the enolate. The metal counterion is chelated between the enolate oxygen and an additional polar group, anionic, carbonyl or ether oxygen attached to the chiral auxiliary. 

Similarly, siloxycyclopropanes (e.g., 3) react smoothly with mercuric acetate in methanol at 20 °C to give 3-mercurio ketones (e.g., 4) [8]. The attack of the metal occurs in such a way that the less alkyl-substituted bond is cleaved. Thus, starting from the enol silyl ether, the overall sequence represents a-mercurio-methylation of the parent ketone. The reaction is likely to proceed via an ionic intermediate Eq. (10). 

With these anthracene-linked dimeric cinchona-PTCs, the Najera group investigated the counterion effect in asymmetric alkylation of 1 by exchanging the classical chloride or bromide anion with tetrafluoroborate (BF4 ) or hexafluorophosphate (PF6-) anions (Scheme 4.10) [17]. They anticipated that both tetrafluoroborate and hexafluorophosphate could form less-tight ionic pairs than chloride or bromide, thus allowing a more easy and rapid complexation of the chiral ammonium cation with the enolate of 1, and therefore driving to a higher enantioselectivity. However, when... 

The rearrangement product detected is the ionic product (an enol) shown a neutral aikene is also produced. At least one of the alkyl chains on the ketone and the alkyl chain on the... 

The chain is completed by displacement of another alkyl radical from a trialkylborane at oxygen by the delocalized radical and the formation of the same boron enolate proposed in the ionic reaction. This alkyl radical adds in its turn to the enone, and the boron enolate which forms is hydrolysed to the ketone product. Only small amounts of oxygen are needed to initiate the chain and it is not surprising that the air around the reaction mixture is enough to start a typical reaction. The water (which is inert to radicals, so can be present in the reaction mixture) again hydrolyses the boron enolate. 

Alkylation of j8-diketones using polymers as supports for the intermediate enolate anion has also been reported (Gelbard and Colonna, 1977). Reaction of several cyclohexyl j3-diketones with Amberlite IRA-9(K) formed a resin-linked j8-diketonate that could be readily alkylated. Similarly, it was shown that alkylation of phenoxide anions can be readily effected when the anions are supported via an ionic bond with the resin (Gelbard and Colonna, 1977). Alkylations of /3-diketones were also shown to occur if a fluoride-substituted, strongly basic resin (Amberlyst A26, A27, or Dowex MSA-1) is used (Miller et at., 1978). In this case, the presence of the fluoride ion was necessary before reaction would proceed. Considering the report on the use of Amberlite IRA-900— a very similar resin— the necessity for a fluoride ion is puzzling. In the same publication, the 0-alkylation of phenols, the sulfenylation of /3-diketones, and the Michael addition of a thiol to an ot,/8-unsaturated ketone were also investigated. 

The second method involves end-quenching of living polymers with appropriate nucleophiles. Although this approach appears to be more attractive than the first one, in situ end funaionali-zation of the living ends is limited to nucleophiles that do not react with the Lewis add coinitiator. Because the ionization equilibrium is shifted to the covalent spedes, the concentration of the ionic active species is very low. Quantitative functionalization can only be accomplished when ionization takes place continuously in the presence of nudeophile. Quenching the vinyl ether polymerization with the malonate anion,certain silyl enol ethers " and silyl ketene acetals have been successfully used to synthesize end-functionalized poly(vinyl ethers). Alkyl amines, " ring-substituted anilines, " " alcohols, " and water " have also been used to quench the vinyl... 

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