Ethers complexes with electrophiles

Complexes with Electrophiles An ether s nonbonding electrons also stabilize borane, BH3. Pure borane exists as a dimer called diborane, B2H6. Diborane is a toxic, flammable, and explosive gas, whose use is both dangerous and inconvenient. Borane forms a stable complex with tetrahydrofuran. The BH3 THF complex is commercially available as a 1 M solution, easily measured and transferred like any other air-sensitive liquid reagent. The availability of BH3 THF has contributed greatly to the convenience of hydroboration (Section 8-7). 

Complexes with Electrophiles An ether s nonbonding electrons also stabilize borane, BH3. Pure borane exists as a dimer called diborane, B2H6. Diborane is a toxic, flammable, and explosive gas, whose use is both dangerous and inconvenient. Borane... 

Alkyl silyl ethers are cleaved by a variety of reagents Whether the silicon-oxygen or the carbon-oxygen bond is cleaved depends on the nature of the reagent used Treatment of alkoxysilanes with electrophilic reagents like antimony tri-fluonde, 40% hydrofluonc acid, or a boron tnfluonde-ether complex results in the cleavage of the silicon-oxygen bond to form mono-, di-, and tnfluorosiloxanes or silanes [19, 20, 21) (equations 18-20)... 

As mentioned earlier, metal complexation not only allows isolation of the QM derivatives but can also dramatically modify their reactivity patterns.29o-QMs are important intermediates in numerous synthetic and biological processes, in which the exocyclic carbon exhibits an electrophilic character.30-33 In contrast, a metal-stabilized o-QM can react as a base or nucleophile (Scheme 3.16).29 For instance, protonation of the Ir-T 4-QM complex 24 by one equivalent of HBF4 gave the initial oxo-dienyl complex 25, while in the presence of an excess of acid the dicationic complex 26 was obtained. Reaction of 24 with I2 led to the formation of new oxo-dienyl complex 27, instead of the expected oxidation of the complex and elimination of the free o-QM. Such reactivity of the exocyclic methylene group can be compared with the reactivity of electron-rich enol acetates or enol silyl ethers, which undergo electrophilic iodination.34... 

In cyclopropanations with electrophilic carbene complexes, yields of cyclopropanes tend to improve with increasing electron density of the alkene. As illustrated by the examples in Table 3.5, cyclopropanations of enol ethers with aryldiazomethanes often proceed in high yields. Simple alkyl-substituted olefins are, however, more difficult to cyclopropanate with diazoalkanes. A few examples of the cyclopropanation of enamines with diazoalkanes have been reported [650]. 

The reaction of acceptor-substituted carbene complexes with alcohols to yield ethers is a valuable alternative to other etherification reactions [1152,1209-1211], This reaction generally proceeds faster than cyclopropanation [1176], As in other transformations with electrophilic carbene complexes, the reaction conditions are mild and well-suited to base- or acid-sensitive substrates [1212], As an illustrative example, Experimental Procedure 4.2.4 describes the carbene-mediated etherification of a serine derivative. This type of substrate is very difficult to etherify under basic conditions (e.g. NaH, alkyl halide [1213]), because of an intramolecular hydrogen-bond between the nitrogen-bound hydrogen and the hydroxy group. Further, upon treatment with bases serine ethers readily eliminate alkoxide to give acrylates. With the aid of electrophilic carbene complexes, however, acceptable yields of 0-alkylated serine derivatives can be obtained. 

Ethers can react with electrophilic carbene complexes to yield oxonium ylides, which usually undergo either elimination reactions or 1,2-alkyl shifts to yield products of a formal carbene C-O bond insertion (Figure 4.11) [1020,1255-1259]. 

If chiral catalysts are used to generate the intermediate oxonium ylides, non-racemic C-O bond insertion products can be obtained [1265,1266]. Reactions of electrophilic carbene complexes with ethers can also lead to the formation of radical-derived products [1135,1259], an observation consistent with a homolysis-recombination mechanism for 1,2-alkyl shifts. Carbene C-H insertion and hydride abstraction can efficiently compete with oxonium ylide formation. Unlike free car-benes [1267,1268] acceptor-substituted carbene complexes react intermolecularly with aliphatic ethers, mainly yielding products resulting from C-H insertion into the oxygen-bound methylene groups [1071,1093]. 

Iron-acyl enolates, such as 2, prepared by x-deprotonation of the corresponding acyl complexes with lithium amides or alkyllithiums, are nearly always generated as fs-enolates which suffer stereoselective alkylation while existing as the crmt-conformer which places the carbon monoxide oxygen anti to the enolate oxygen (see Section 1.1.1.3.4.1.). These enolates react readily with strong electrophiles, such as primary iodoalkanes, primary alkyl sulfonates, 3-bromopropenes, (bromomethyl)benzenes and 3-bromopropynes, a-halo ethers and a-halo carbonyl compounds (Houben-Weyl, Volume 13/9 a, p 413) (see Table 6 for examples). 

Xenon difluoride reacts with alcohols to form unstable alkoxyxenon fluoride intermediates. Alkoxyxenon fluorides react as positive oxygen electrophiles when boron trifluoride-diethyl ether complex is used as a catalyst. However, these alkoxyxenon fluorides react as apparent fluorine electrophiles with proton catalysts (hydrogen fluoride generated in situ).49... 

AUyRc aluminum ate complexes. Carbanions of allylic sulfides and ethers generally react with electrophiles at both the a- and the y-position. If the carbanion is converted into an ate complex -with triethylaluminum, electrophiles react predominately at the a-position. After the reaction is completed the trialkylaluminum is destroyed with aqueous methanol. Boron ate complexes are not so generally useful for control of regioselectivity.1 Example ... 

Chromium activation allows a strategy for aryl ether synthesis in four stages (i) electrophilic chlorination (ii) chromium coordination (iii) alkoxide substitution for chloride and (iv) oxidative decomplexa-tion.33 The process is effective for the synthesis of 6-methoxytetrahydroquinolines and 5-methoxydihydroindole derivatives, for example. Chlorination of iV-acetyltetrahydroquinoline with SO2CI2 followed by deacetylation provides 6-chlorotetrahydroisoquinoline in 77% yield (equation 11).33 Complexation with [Cr(CO)6] in diglyme-cyclohexane at 125 °C for 53 h using the Strohmeier apparatus gave the chromium complex (13) in 85% yield, based on 40% recovery of starting material. The unre-... 

According to the transition state proposed by Nagasawa et al., the catalyst forms a complex with the Z-enolate of Schiffs base through ionic and hydrogen-bonding interactions. In addition, the methyl groups on the spiro ether ring controls the electrophile approach. 

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