Epoxides with selenide ions

Treatment of diphenyl diselenide with tributylphosphine in an alkaline medium generates a benzeneselenolate anion [24], which reacts with various electrophiles, such as halides, epoxides, a, -unsaturated ketones, to generate various selenides [24,25]. The mechanism for the generation of the benzeneselenolate is proposed as shown in Scheme 17 [25]. A selenophosphonium ion and/or a pentavalent phosphorus species are initially formed in the reaction of diphenyl diselenide and tributylphosphine, and then the addition of sodium hydroxide liberates the benzeneselenolate and phosphine oxide. 

Alkyl stannyl selenides are also useful nucleophilic selenium reagents. Tri-methylstannyl or tributylstannyl methyl selenides 58 react with halides 59 to produce unsymmetrical selenides 60 in good yields in the presence of a fluoride ion or by treatment with n-butyllithium (Scheme 44) [84]. Tributylstannyl phenyl selenide (61) reacts smoothly with acetals to give monoselenoacetals 62 in the presence of boron trifluoride etherate (Scheme 45 a) [85]. Similar reaction conditions were applied to the regioselective ring opening of epoxides (Scheme 45b) [86]. 

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