Esters from unsaturated ketones

The acylpalladium complex formed from acyl halides undergoes intramolecular alkene insertion. 2,5-Hexadienoyl chloride (894) is converted into phenol in its attempted Rosenmund reduction[759]. The reaction is explained by the oxidative addition, intramolecular alkene insertion to generate 895, and / -elimination. Chloroformate will be a useful compound for the preparation of a, /3-unsaturated esters if its oxidative addition and alkene insertion are possible. An intramolecular version is known, namely homoallylic chloroformates are converted into a-methylene-7-butyrolactones in moderate yields[760]. As another example, the homoallylic chloroformamide 896 is converted into the q-methylene- -butyrolactams 897 and 898[761]. An intermolecular version of alkene insertion into acyl chlorides is known only with bridgehead acid chlorides. Adamantanecarbonyl chloride (899) reacts with acrylonitrile to give the unsaturated ketone 900[762],... 

The best Michael reactions are those that take place when a particularly stable enolate ion such as that derived from a /i-keto ester or other 1,3-dicarbonyl compound adds to an unhindered a,/3-unsaturated ketone. Tor example, ethyl acetoacetate reacts with 3-buten-2-one in the presence of sodium ethoxide to yield the conjugate addition product. 

The first step of the Robinson annulation is simply a Michael reaction. An enamine or an enolate ion from a jS-keto ester or /3-diketone effects a conjugate addition to an a-,/3-unsaturated ketone, yielding a 1,5-diketone. But as we saw in Section 23.6,1,5-diketones undergo intramolecular aldol condensation to yield cyclohexenones when treated with base. Thus, the final product contains a six-membered ring, and an annulation has been accomplished. An example occurs during the commercial synthesis of the steroid hormone estrone (figure 23.9). 

This section contains dehydrogenations to form alkenes and unsaturated ketones, esters and amides. It also includes the conversion of aromatic rings to alkenes. Reduction of aryls to dienes is found in Section 377 (Alkene-Alkene). Hydrogenation of aryls to alkanes and dehydrogenations to form aryls are included in Section 74 (Alkyls from Alkenes). 

Nitroalkenes react with lithium dianions of carboxylic acids or with hthium enolates at -100 °C, and subsequent treatment of the Michael adducts with aqueous acid gives y-keto acids or esters in a one-pot operation, respectively (Eq. 4.52).66 The sequence of Michael addition to nitroalkenes and Nef reaction (Section 6.1) provides a useful tool for organic synthesis. For example, the addition of carbanions derived from sulfones to nitroalkenes followed by the Nef reaction and elimination of the sulfonyl group gives a,P-unsaturated ketones (Eq. 4.53).67... 

In the presence of Bu OK, (benzotriazole-l-yl)methyl isocyanide (BetMIC) 697 undergoes alkylation on the methylene group to give isocyanide 698. The anion derived from 698, upon its treatment with Bu OK, adds to the electron-deficient double bonds of ajl-unsaturated ketones, esters or nitriles to produce pyrroles 699. A similar reaction of isocyanide 698 with Schiff bases provides imidazoles 700. In both cases, use of unsubstituted isonitriles 697 in the reactions leads to heterocycles 699 and 700 with R1 = H (Scheme 108) <1997H(44)67>. 

Drake, L.R. and Marvel, C.S., Phosphonic acids and their alkyl esters from a, 3-unsaturated ketones, /. Org. Chem., 2, 387, 1938. 

Method B The protected amino ester (10 mmol) and a,P-unsaturated ketone (10 mmol) are stirred with K,CO, (0.28 g) and TEBA-C1 (0.23 g, 1 mmol) at room temperature until the mixture solidifies. The mixture is allowed to stand for 10 h, and H20 (100 ml) is then added. The precipitated pyrrolidine is collected, washed with H20, and recrystallized from MeOH. 

Palladium-catalysed C-C bond formation under Heck reaction conditions, which normally requires anhydrous conditions and the presence of copper(I) salts, is aided by the addition of quaternary ammonium salts. It has been shown that it is frequently possible to dispense with the copper catalyst and use standard two-phase reactions conditions [e.g. 18, 19]. Tetra-/i-butylammonium salts catalyse the palladium-catalysed reaction of iodoarenes with alkynes to yield the arylethynes in high yield [20, 21], whereas the reaction with 3-methylbut-1 -yn-3-ol (Scheme 6.30) provides a route to diarylethynes [22]. Diarylethynes are also formed from the reaction of an iodoarene with trimethylsilylethyne [23], Iodoalkynes react with a,p-unsaturated ketones and esters to produce the conjugated yne-eneones [19],... 

Semmelhack et al. chose CuBr, together with either Red-Al or LiAl(OMe)3H in a 1 2 ratio, to afford presumed hydrido cuprates, albeit of unknown composition [llj. In THF, both the former Na complex and the latter Li complex are heterogeneous (and of differing reactivities), yet each is capable of 1,4-reductions of unsaturated ketones and methyl esters (Eq. 5.4). Commins has used a modified version, prepared from lithium tri-t-butoxy-aluminium hydride and CuBr (in a 3 4.4 ratio), to reduce a 3-substituted-N-acylated pyridine regioselectively at the a-site [12]. 

Although unhindered enones and enoates work well, attempted 1,4-reduction of acrylonitrile afforded a-silylated product 9 (Scheme 5.4). Presumably this unexpected product results from a 1,4-reduction/a-anion trapping by the PhMe2SiCl present in solution. Curiously, there was no mention of any similar quenching of intermediate enolates on either carbon or oxygen when unsaturated ketones or esters were involved. 

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