Eschenmoser sulfur elimination reactions

Sulfur 31, 546, 993 32, 918 elimination s. Eschenmoser sulfur elimination -, reactions of - in hexamethyl-phosphoramide 31, 546... 

The reaction of tetrahydro-l,3-thiazine-2-thione and diethyl 2-chloro-malonate in the presence of triethylamine in boiling methylene chloride for 1.5 hr gave tetrahydro-1,3-thiazin-2-ylidenemalonate (508) in 33% yield via 507 through Eschenmoser sulfur elimination, together with traces of the mesoionic derivative (509) [77JCS(P 1) 1107]. In a similar reaction, diethyl 2-bromomalonate afforded the mesoionic compound (509) in 80% yield. Tetrahydro-l,3-thiazin-2-ylidenemalonate (508) was also obtained in 42% yield from 509 by irradiation in the presence of tributylphosphine in ethanol for 15 hr under argon [77JCS(P1)1107]. 

The synthesis of thiiranes with subsequent elimination of sulfur is an important procedure for the creation of C=C bonds, especially for sterically crowded systems (47,48), in analogy to the Eschenmoser-sulfide-contraction reaction (116). The spontaneous elimination of sulfur was observed in the rhodium-catalyzed reaction of diazo compound 62, which gave rise to the formation of cyclopentenone derivative 63 (117) (Scheme 5.24). A synthesis of indolizomycin was published by Danishefsky and co-workers (118) and involved a similar annulation step. In this case, however, the desulfurization reaction was achieved by treatment with Raney Ni. 

---