Esters alkoxides

It was proposed that propagation proceeds by reaction of carboxyl anion with epoxide to form an ester-alkoxide anion which can react in turn with anhydride to form ester and another carboxyl anion. The rate-determining step was thought to be the reaction of carboxyl anion with epoxide, which would lead to first-order kinetics with respect to epoxide concentration. 

Hydroxides and oxides of the non-metals and less electropositive metals behave as oxyacids and react with alcohols to form esters (alkoxides) and water. Typically such reactions involve an equilibrium and removal of the generated water by fractionation is necessary to obtain the pure... 

For the preparation of thiocarbonic half esters, alkoxides or thiolates are added to carbon disulfide or carbonyl sulfide to the following scheme (where M = a metal) ... 

Palladium alkoxide complexes are thought to be formed in the reactions of alcohols catalyzed by palladium(II) chloride. These reactions include the oxidation of alcohols, yielding acetals or ketones,and their carbonylation, yielding esters.Alkoxide intermediates are also thought to be involved in the reaction of sulfur dioxide with [PdCl2] suspended in alcohol (equation 15). ° ... 

Hydrolysis of alkyl esters by CyD proceeds via general base catalysis by CyD-0 [8], which is in contrast with nucleophilic catalysis by CyD (dired attack by CyD-0 to the substrate) in the hydrolysis of aryl esters (see above). The leaving groups of alkyl esters (alkoxide ions) are too poor to be removed from the tetrahedral intermediate formed by the nucleophilic attack by Cy D-0 . Thus, as an alternative way, CyD-0 activates the water in solutions by general base catalysis and this activates the attacks of water towards the substrate. 

The Claisen condensation bears the same relationship to the aldol condensation as the addition of a nucleophile to an ester bears to the addition of a nucleophile to an aldehyde or ketone. Whereas the tetrahedral alkoxide formed in both aldehyde (or ketone) reactions can only revert to starting material or protonate, both ester reactions have the added option of losing the ester alkoxide. What is added in ester chemistry is the possibility of the elimination phase of the addition-elimination process (Fig. 19.100). 

It is interesting to note that under the influence of aluminium alkoxides (in alcohol or, better, in benzene solution) aldehydes produce the ester (Tischenko reaction) ... 

Only esters containing two a-hydrogen atoms (ethyl acetate, propionate, n-butyrate, etc.) can be condensed with the aid of sodium alkoxides. For esters with one a-hydrogen atom, such as ethyl tsobutyrate, the more powerful base sodium triphenylmethide PhaC Na leads to condensation with the formation of ethyl a-tsobutyrylisobutyrate ... 

The acetoacetic ester condensation (involving the acylation of an ester by an ester) is a special case of a more general reaction term the Claisen condensation. The latter is the condensation between a carboxylic ester and an ester (or ketone or nitrile) containing an a-hydrogen atom in the presence of a base (sodium, sodium alkoxide, sodamide, sodium triphenylmethide, etc.). If R—H is the compound containing the a- or active hydrogen atom, the Claisen condensation may be written ... 

Clalsen aldol condensation. This consists in the condensation of an aromatic aldehyde and an ester R—CHjCOOCjHj in the presence of finely divided sodium and a trace of alcohol at a low temperature. The catalyst is the alkoxide ion aqueous alkalis caimot be employed since they will hydrolyse the resulting ester. The product is an ap-unsaturated ester, for example ... 

On Irealmenl wilh alkoxide bases esters undergo self condensalion lo give a p kelo ester and an alcohol Elhyl acelale for example undergoes a Claisen condensalion on Ireal menl wilh sodium elhoxide lo give a p kelo ester known by ils common name ethyl ace toacetate (also called acetoacetic ester)... 

We already know what happens when simple esters are treated with alkoxide bases— they undergo the Claisen condensation (Section 211) Simple esters have s of approximately 22 and give only a small amount of enolate when treated with alkoxide bases The small amount of enolate that is formed reacts by nucleophilic addition to the carbonyl group of the ester... 

When butyrolactone and alcohols are heated for long times and at high temperatures in the presence of acidic catalysts, 4-alkoxybutytic esters are formed. With sodium alkoxides, sodium 4-alkoxybutyrates are formed (150). 

Dialkylaminoethyl acryhc esters are readily prepared by transesterification of the corresponding dialkylaminoethanol (102,103). Catalysts include strong acids and tetraalkyl titanates for higher alkyl esters and titanates, sodium phenoxides, magnesium alkoxides, and dialkyitin oxides, as well as titanium and zirconium chelates, for the preparation of functional esters. Because of loss of catalyst activity during the reaction, incremental or continuous additions may be required to maintain an adequate reaction rate. 

RandomiZation/Interesterification. Transesterification occurs when a carboxyUc acid (acidolysis) or alcohol (alcoholysis) reacts with an ester to produce a different ester (20). Ester—ester interchange is also a form of transesterification. If completely unsaturated triglyceride oil (UUU) reacts with a totally saturated fat (SSS) in the presence of an active catalyst such as sodium, potassium, or sodium alkoxide, triglycerides of intermediate composition may be formed. 

Difluoroethanol is prepared by the mercuric oxide cataly2ed hydrolysis of 2-bromo-l,l-difluoroethane with carboxyHc acid esters and alkaH metal hydroxides ia water (27). Its chemical reactions are similar to those of most alcohols. It can be oxidi2ed to difluoroacetic acid [381-73-7] (28) it forms alkoxides with alkaH and alkaline-earth metals (29) with alkoxides of other alcohols it forms mixed ethers such as 2,2-difluoroethyl methyl ether [461-57-4], bp 47°C, or 2,2-difluoroethyl ethyl ether [82907-09-3], bp 66°C (29). 2,2-Difluoroethyl difluoromethyl ether [32778-16-8], made from the alcohol and chlorodifluoromethane ia aqueous base, has been iavestigated as an inhalation anesthetic (30,31) as have several ethers made by addition of the alcohol to various fluoroalkenes (32,33). Methacrylate esters of the alcohol are useful as a sheathing material for polymers ia optical appHcations (34). The alcohol has also been reported to be useful as a working fluid ia heat pumps (35). The alcohol is available ia research quantities for ca 6/g (1992). 

Alkyl hahdes in the presence of silver oxide react with alkyl malates to yield alkoxy derivatives of succinic acid, eg, 2-ethoxysuccinic acid, H00CCH2CH(0C2H )C00H (12,13). A synthetic approach to produce ethers of malic acid is the reaction of malic esters and sodium alkoxides which affords 2-alkoxysuccinic esters (14). 

Enolate Initiators. In principle, ester enolate anions should represent the ideal initiators for anionic polymeri2ation of alkyl methacrylates. Although general procedures have been developed for the preparation of a variety of alkaU metal enolate salts, many of these compounds are unstable except at low temperatures (67,102,103). Usehil initiating systems for acrylate polymeri2ation have been prepared from complexes of ester enolates with alkak metal alkoxides (104,105). 

Inefficiencies ia the reaction with POCl leads to alternative production of trialkyl phosphates by employing the sodium alkoxide rather than the alkyl alcohol itself Dialkyl aryl phosphates are produced ia two steps. The low molecular weight alcohol iavolved (eg, butyl) first reacts with excess POCl. The neutral phosphate ester is then completed by the iatermediate chloridate reacting with excess sodium arylate ia water. 

Transesterification of methyl methacrylate with the appropriate alcohol is often the preferred method of preparing higher alkyl and functional methacrylates. The reaction is driven to completion by the use of excess methyl methacrylate and by removal of the methyl methacrylate—methanol a2eotrope. A variety of catalysts have been used, including acids and bases and transition-metal compounds such as dialkjitin oxides (57), titanium(IV) alkoxides (58), and zirconium acetoacetate (59). The use of the transition-metal catalysts allows reaction under nearly neutral conditions and is therefore more tolerant of sensitive functionality in the ester alcohol moiety. In addition, transition-metal catalysts often exhibit higher selectivities than acidic catalysts, particularly with respect to by-product ether formation. 

Enols and alkoxides give chelates with elimination of alcohol. For example, in the reaction of the enol form of acetylacetone [123-54-6] all four alkoxide groups attached to zirconium can be replaced, but only two of the four attached to titanium (Fig. 3). Acetoacetic esters react similarly. 

Metal alkoxides cataly2e the Tishchenko condensation of aldehydes (62), the transesterification of carboxyhc esters, the Meerwein-Poimdorf reaction (63), and other enolization and condensation reactions. 

Catalytic amounts of mercuric chloride are usually employed in this preparation. Aluminum isopropoxide is a useful Meerwein-Potmdorf-Verley reducing agent in certain ester-exchange reactions and is a precursor for aluminum glycinate, a buffering agent (see Alkoxides, metal). 

Treatment of cyanopyiidines such as (25) with a Giignaid reagent yields a ketone (32). A carboxyhc ester is obtained by reaction of the nitrile (25) with sodium alkoxide, followed by hydrolysis (33). 

Generally, the carboxyl group is not readily reduced. Lithium aluminum hydride is one of the few reagents that can reduce these organic acids to alcohols. The scheme involves the formation of an alkoxide, which is hydroly2ed to the alcohol. Commercially, the alternative to direct reduction involves esterification of the acid followed by the reduction of the ester. 

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