Ethenetetracarboxylic acid esters, radical anions

Esters of ethenetetracarboxylic acid, (37), and disubstituted (fluoren-9-ylidene)me-thane derivatives, (38), are reduced sequentially to radical anions and dianions [2, 68, 84, 85]. Only the dianions are sufficiently basic to be useful as EGBs [53,86]. For (37), the two reduction potentials are separated by 0.2 V [68], and even with a working potential allowing formation only of the radical anion, the dianion can be formed by disproportionation. The protonated form of the dianionic EGBs, (37H) and (38H) , will normally be stable in solution since the pK values of the dihydro products are expected to be in the range 12 to 16. 

The results summarised in Table 4 show clearly that good yields of the 1 1 Michael adducts can be obtained in cathodically initiated reactions. It is not clear, however, why the reaction should fail for acrylonitrile even if dimerisation of the initially formed radical-anion is much faster thaq,protonation the resulting dimeric dianion should still be sufficiently basic to deprotonate dialkylmalonate esters. A feature of especial significance is the usefulness of esters of ethenetetracarboxylic acid. Apart from their use in EGB catalysed reactions they have been much used in stoichiometric amount. 

Derivatives of the general formula (7) in Table 6 have been successfully used as probases and their properties in this context are being further explored. In common with the azobenzenes and ethenetetracarboxylate esters, the fluoren-9-ylidene derivatives usually display two reversible one-electron peaks in cyclic voltammetric experiments. Although disproportionation is possible (cf. Scheme 12) it is the dianions which are the effective bases. It was shown early on that the radical-anions of such derivatives are long-lived in relatively acidic conditions (e.g. in DMF solution the first reduction peak of Ph C -.QCN) remains reversible in the presence of a 570-fold molar excess of acetic acid, at 0.1 V s ). Even the dianions are relatively weak bases, useful mainly for ylid formation from phosphonium and sulphonium salts (pKj s 11-15) they are not sufficiently basic to effect the Wittig-Homer reaction which involves deprotonation of phosphonate esters... 

Esters of ethenetetracarboxylic acid (6) and disubstituted-(fluoren-9-ylidene)methane derivatives (7) are reduced sequentially to radical anions and dianions. It is the dianions that display useful basicity on a preparative scale (discussed later). 

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