Ester carbonyls

The success of the last reaction depends upon the inertness of the ester carbonyl groups towards the organocadmium compound with its aid and the use of various ester acid chlorides, a carbon chain can be built up to any reasonable length whilst retaining a reactive functional group (the ester group) at one end of the chain. Experimental details are given for l-chloro-2-hexanone and propiophenone. The complete reaction (formation of ketones or keto-esters) can be carried out in one flask without isolation of intermediates, so that the preparation is really equivalent to one step. 

There are, however, two useful alkylating-redudng methods. One is the methylenation of the ester carbonyl group with Tebbe s reagent, the other is the conversion of thionolactones to cyclic thioketals and subsequent reduction. 

Nucleophilic acyl substitutions at the ester carbonyl group are summarized m Table 20 5 on page 849 Esters are less reactive than acyl chlorides and acid anhydrides Nude ophilic acyl substitution m esters especially ester hydrolysis has been extensively mves tigated from a mechanistic perspective Indeed much of what we know concerning the general topic of nucleophilic acyl substitution comes from studies carried out on esters The following sections describe those mechanistic studies... 

In general the equilibrium represented by the sum of steps 1 to 3 is unfavorable (Two ester carbonyl groups are more stable than one ester plus one ketone carbonyl) However because the p keto ester is deprotonated under the reaction conditions the equilibrium represented by the sum of steps 1 to 4 does he to the side of products On subsequent acidification (step 5) the anion of the p keto ester is converted to its neutral form and isolated... 

Bulk Polymerization. The bulk polymerization of acryUc monomers is characterized by a rapid acceleration in the rate and the formation of a cross-linked insoluble network polymer at low conversion (90,91). Such network polymers are thought to form by a chain-transfer mechanism involving abstraction of the hydrogen alpha to the ester carbonyl in a polymer chain followed by growth of a branch radical. Ultimately, two of these branch radicals combine (91). Commercially, the bulk polymerization of acryUc monomers is of limited importance. 

The vast majority of commercial apphcations of methacryhc acid and its esters stem from their facile free-radical polymerizabiUty (see Initiators, FREE-RADICAl). Solution, suspension, emulsion, and bulk polymerizations have been used to advantage. Although of much less commercial importance, anionic polymerizations of methacrylates have also been extensively studied. Strictiy anhydrous reaction conditions at low temperatures are required to yield high molecular weight polymers in anionic polymerization. Side reactions of the propagating anion at the ester carbonyl are difficult to avoid and lead to polymer branching and inactivation (38—44). 

The role of specific interactions in the plasticization of PVC has been proposed from work on specific interactions of esters in solvents (eg, hydrogenated chlorocarbons) (13), work on blends of polyesters with PVC (14—19), and work on plasticized PVC itself (20—23). Modes of iateraction between the carbonyl functionaHty of the plasticizer ester or polyester were proposed, mostly on the basis of results from Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ftir). Shifts in the absorption frequency of the carbonyl group of the plasticizer ester to lower wave number, indicative of a reduction in polarity (ie, some iateraction between this functionaHty and the polymer) have been reported (20—22). Work performed with dibutyl phthalate (22) suggests an optimum concentration at which such iateractions are maximized. Spectral shifts are in the range 3—8 cm . Similar shifts have also been reported in blends of PVC with polyesters (14—20), again showing a concentration dependence of the shift to lower wave number of the ester carbonyl absorption frequency. 

Many other organometaUic compounds also react with carbonyl groups. Lithium alkyls and aryls add to the ester carbonyl group to give either an alcohol or an olefin. Lithium dimethyl cuprate has been used to prepare ketones from esters (41). Tebbe s reagent, Cp2TiCH2AlCl(CH2)2, where Cp = clyclopentadienyl, and other metal carbene complexes can convert the C=0 of esters to C=CR2 (42,43). 

Cellobiose was prepared first by Skraup and Konig by the saponification of the octaacetate with alcoholic potassium hydroxide, and the method was improved by Pringsheim and Merkatz.3 Aqueous barium hydroxide also has been employed for the purpose, and methyl alcoholic ammonia has been used extensively for the hydrolysis of carbohydrate acetates. The method of catalytic hydrolysis with a small quantity of sodium methylate was introduced by Zemplen,i who considered the action to be due to the addition of the reagent to the ester-carbonyl groups of the sugar acetate and the decomposition of the addition compound by reaction with alcohol. The present procedure, reported by Zemplen, Gerecs, and Hadacsy, is a considerable improvement over the original method (see Note 2). 

The transformation of an ester carbonyl group to a difluoromethylene group, which IS usually difficult to perform, can be accomplished by conversion to the thiaesier followed by treatment with diethylaminosulfur trifluoride (DAST). A vanety of ester types react efficiently, although the reaction fails with lactones. Remarkably, trimethylsilylmethyl esters carry through the proeedure with the silyl group intact [13] (equation 17). 

Van Leusen and co-workers also demonstrated the utility of dilithio-tosylmethyl isocyanide (dilithio-TosMIC) to extend the scope of the application. Dilithio-TosMIC is readily formed from TosMIC and two equivalents of n-butyllithium (BuLi) in THF at -70"C. Dilithio-TosMIC converts ethyl benzoate to oxazole 14 in 70% yield whereas TosMIC monoanion does not react. In addition, unsaturated, conjugated esters (15) react with dilithio-TosMIC exclusively through the ester carbonyl to provide oxazoles (16). On the other hand, use of the softer TosMIC-monoanion provides pyrroles through reaction of the carbon-carbon double bond in the Michael acceptor. 

There are two methods for the introduction of a hydroxyalkyl group at position 5 of the pyrazol-3-one ring. Schmidt and Zimmer converted furanediones 258a-k into arylmethylenepyrazol-3-reaction with hydrazine hydrate or methylhydrazine (83Jmechanism proposed for the reaction involves nucleophilic attack of the hydrazine on the ketone carbonyl, followed by attack on the ester carbonyl and ring opening of the... 

In the case of the cyclohexane derivative 7 however, that bears an equatorial acetate group, two axial cis-/3-hydrogens are available, and elimination in both directions is possible. The pyrolysis of 7 yields the two elimination products 8 and 6. Formation of product 8 is strongly favored, because the new double bond is in conjugation to the ester carbonyl group. ... 

The organozinc compound 2 is less reactive than an organomagnesium compound the addition to an ester carbonyl group is much slower than the addition to an aldehyde or ketone. Nevertheless the addition of 2 to the carbonyl group of unreacted a-halo ester 1 is the most frequently observed side-reaction ... 

Ethoxycarbonyloxyethyl 6-(D-a-azidophenylacetamido)penicillinate (98 g) was prepared from sodium 6-(D-a-azidophenylacetamido]penicillinate (397 g, 1 mol), a-chlorodiethylcar-bonate (458 g, 3 mols) and sodium bicarbonate (504 g, 6 molsl. The product showed strong IR absorption at 2090 cm- and 1 780-1750 cm" showing the presence of azido group and /3-lactam and ester carbonyls. 

Lster hydrolysis occurs through a typical nucleophilic acyl substitution pathway in which hydroxide ion is the nucleophile that adds to the ester carbonyl group to give a tetrahedral intermediate. Loss of alkoxide ion then gives a carboxylic acid, which is deprotonated to give the carboxylate ion. Addition of aqueous HC1 in a separate step after the saponification is complete then pro-tonates the carboxylate ion and gives the carboxylic acid (Figure 21.17). 

O Nucleophilic addition of hydroxide ion to the ester carbonyl group gives the usual tetrahedral alkoxide intermediate. 

Merck s thienamycin synthesis commences with mono (V-silylation of dibenzyl aspartate (13, Scheme 2), the bis(benzyl) ester of aspartic acid (12). Thus, treatment of a cooled (0°C) solution of 13 in ether with trimethylsilyl chloride and triethylamine, followed by filtration to remove the triethylamine hydrochloride by-product, provides 11. When 11 is exposed to the action of one equivalent of tm-butylmagnesium chloride, the active hydrogen attached to nitrogen is removed, and the resultant anion spontaneously condenses with the electrophilic ester carbonyl four atoms away. After hydrolysis of the reaction mixture with 2 n HC1 saturated with ammonium chloride, enantiomerically pure azetidinone ester 10 is formed in 65-70% yield from 13. Although it is conceivable that... 

Fradet227,232, in an esterification study on models, examined the reaction of octadecanoic acid with tetrabutoxytitanium. He found that a small amount of butyl octadecanoate is formed (absorption of the ester carbonyl at 1740 an-1) and that the carboxy absorption at 1710 cm-1 disappears completely. Simultaneously, two bands appear at 1560 and 1450 an-1, which is in agreement with Yoshino302. The ratio of the intensity of each of these two peaks to the intensity of ester peak (1740 cm-1) does not change when the concentration of the solution used in the spectroscopic study is varied consequently, the interaction between carbonyl and titanium is most probably intramolecular ... 

The product obtained from this distillation usually contains small amounts of acetone cyanohydrin acetate, as evidenced by an ester carbonyl band at 1740 cm.-1 in its infrared spectrum. This material does not interfere with the nitration reactions of the reagent. It may be removed by fractionation through a more efficient column. 

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