Enolates stable equivalents

We could prepare a-alkoxy-y-phenylselenenyl aldehydes as "stable" equivalents of a-alkoxy-P,y-unsaturated aldehydes but their reaction with boron enolates did not lead to the expected condensation products, probably due to inadequate work up conditions. 

Either the tertiary amine or the quaternary ammonium salt can be stored as a stable equivalent of the exo-methylene compound. In our first example, the Mannich base with dimethylamine is first methylated with methyl iodide and then added to the conjugate addition reaction. Elimination of trimethylamine, which escapes from the refluxing ethanol as a gas, reveals the exo-methylene ketone in which the methylene group is exo to a chain. Fast conjugate addition of the stabilized enolate of diethyl malonate produces the product. 

Enol ethers could be used as gaseous alkyne (acetylene and propyne) equivalents, and liquid ketene acetal could be used as a stable equivalent of unstable gaseous ethynyl methyl ether in cationic rhodium(I)/BINAP complex-catalyzed [2 -1- 2 - - 2] cycloaddition (Scheme 4.46) [49]. 

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. 

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. 

Conjugate reduction.1 This stable copper(I) hydride cluster can effect conjugate hydride addition to a,p-unsaturated carbonyl compounds, with apparent utilization of all six hydride equivalents per cluster. No 1,2-reduction of carbonyl groups or reduction of isolated double bonds is observed. Undesirable side reactions such as aldol condensation can be suppressed by addition of water. Reactions in the presence of chlorotrimethylsilane result in silyl enol ethers. The reduction is stereoselective, resulting in hydride delivery to the less-hindered face of the substrate. 

Sterically hindered, mesityl-substituted, stable enols 72 have been examined with regard to one-electron oxidation. Using two equivalents of a one-electron oxidant such as triarylaminium salts, iron(III)phenanthroline, thianthrenium perchlorate or ceric ammonium nitrate in acetonitrile-benzofurans 73 are obtained in good yields within a few seconds [111]. 

The enolate ions are unstable intermediates, hence the pseudo steady state approximation can be applied to these intermediates, resulting in a kinetic model in which only stable components figure. It also can be proven (ref.5) that such a model will be mathematically equivalent to the one as follows from the network presented in figure 1. 

In contrast, the closely related palladium acetate-promoted intramolecular alkylation of alkenes by tri-methylsilyl enol ethers (Scheme 4)6,7 has been used to synthesize a large number of bridged carbocyclic systems (Table 1). In principle, this process should be capable of being made catalytic in palladium(II), since silyl enol ethers are stable to a range of oxidants used to carry the Pd° -> Pd11 redox chemistry required for catalysis. In practice, catalytically efficient conditions have not yet been developed, and the reaction is usually carried out using a full equivalent of palladium(II) acetate. This chemistry has been used in the synthesis of quadrone (equation 2).8 With the more electrophilic palladium(II) trifluoroace-tate, methyl enol ethers underwent this cyclization process (equation 3).9... 

Enamines are the stable products of a similar reaction between secondary amines (such as pyrrolidine or morpholine) and aldehydes and ketones.218 These vinylamines are reactive reagents of value in synthesis they function as specific enol equivalents of carbonyl compounds, readily undergoing alkylation and acylation processes (e.g. Section 5.9.2, p. 632). 

When this type of reaction was applied to the preparation of the ester 2, phosphorus trichloride was used as the phosphorus (III) halide. Treatment of this with one mole equivalent of 3,3-dimethoxyprop-l-ene yields mainly the enol ether 4, with smaller amounts of the isomeric a-chloroallyl methyl ether 5. This mixture is not very stable and has to be treated with trimethyl phosphite rapidly, in order to provide 2 in good yield, as shown in Scheme 1. The significance of this sequence is that it reveals that since 2 is the only product, the reactions leading to 2 via 4 must proceed by two allylic inversions, whilst those via 5 involve direct substitution twice at the original acetal carbon. 

Among the best enol equivalents for aldehydes are enamines.19 They are stable compounds, easily made from aldehydes 95 and secondary amines, reacting with electrophiles in the same way as enols 96 to give iminium salts 97, hydrolysed to substituted aldehydes 98. 

Silyl enol ethers (Figure Si3.1) are stable molecules which may be isolated, purified, and characterized using standard organic procedures. As will be illustrated below, they are sources of regiochemically-pure enolate ions and their equivalents, and as such they play an important role in modern synthetic organic chemistry. 

According to Section 12.3 enamines are just one synthetic equivalent for enols that are not sufficiently represented in equilibrium with a carhonyl compound to allow for a-functional-izations. Enol ethers and silyl enol ethers, which are addressed in this section, are other synthetic equivalents for such enols. An enol ether, for example, is used as an enol equivalent for aldehyde enols, since several aldehydes do not form stable enamines. In addition, enol ethers or silyl enol ethers are usually employed as synthetic equivalents for the enols of ,/i-unsatu-rated carbonyl compounds. The attempt to react ce,/ -unsaturated carhonyl compounds with secondary amines to give a dienamine is often frustrated by a competing 1,4-addition of the amine. The combination of these factors turns the dienol ether B of Figure 12.23 into a species for which there is no analog in enamine chemistry. 

LDA is bulky, so it does not take part in nucleophilic attack at the carbonyl group, and it is basic— the p.KTa of diisopropylamine is about 35—plenty basic enough to deprotonate next to any carbonyl group. The lithium enolate is stable at low temperature (-78 °C) but reactive enough to be useful. Lithium enolates are the most commonly used stable enolate equivalents in chemistry. 

Specific enol equivalents are intermediates that still have the reactivity of enols or enolates but are stable enough to be prepared in good yield from the carbonyl compound. That was all we needed to know in Chapter 26. Now we know that... 

The conjugated ylides derived from aldehydes, ketones, and esters are all sufficiently stable to be commercially available as the ylids—one of the few examples of specific enol equivalents that you can actually buy. The ylid corresponding to the enolate of acetaldehyde is a solid, m.p. 185-188 °C that reacts well with other aldehydes, even if they are enolizable. 

Unsymmetrical ketones often give a single product, even without the use of a specific enol equivalent, as reaction usually occurs on the less substituted side. This is another consequence of the final enolization being the irreversible step. In this example, both possible products may form, but only one of them can enolize. Under the equilibrating conditions of the reaction, only the enolate is stable, and all the material ends up as the isomer shown. 

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