Ethers reaction with Lewis acids

The most important reaction with Lewis acids such as boron trifluoride etherate is polymerization (Scheme 30) (72MI50601). Other Lewis acids have been used SnCL, Bu 2A1C1, Bu sAl, Et2Zn, SO3, PFs, TiCU, AICI3, Pd(II) and Pt(II) salts. Trialkylaluminum, dialkylzinc and other alkyl metal initiators may partially hydrolyze to catalyze the polymerization by an anionic mechanism rather than the cationic one illustrated in Scheme 30. Cyclic dimers and trimers are often products of cationic polymerization reactions, and desulfurization of the monomer may occur. Polymerization of optically active thiiranes yields optically active polymers (75MI50600). 

Obviously, the basic site in KB5H8 is its basal B-B single bond and, therefore, reactions with Lewis acids are to be expected. A typical example is the reaction with diborane in ether at —78 °C which generates via its //-adduct (3c2e-BBB bond) the nido-undeca-hexaborate(l—), B6Hn, by cluster expansion. This anion can be proto nated to B Hn [53],... 

McDonald and coworkers studied a series of tandem endo-selective and stereospecific oxacyclization of polyepoxides by reaction with Lewis acid [92-95]. Polyepoxides, such as 50, can be obtained from the epoxidation of triene 49 with ketone 26 (Scheme 8). This cascade cyclization of polyepoxides provides an efficient method to synthesize substituted polycyclic ether structures, which are present in a number of biologically active marine natural products. 

As pointed out earlier (Chapter 9, Part II), ethers (generically R-O-R, R-O-Ar, and Ar-O-Ar, where R = alkyl and Ar = aryl) can be induced to undergo cleavage reactions with Lewis acids. In particular, hydrogen iodide (HI) found utility as a reagent suited (albeit in low yield and with many side reactions) for... 

Ether cleavage has also been observed in reactions with Lewis acids and acetic anhydride. Lewis acids which have been used in this context include FeCL, ... 

The product of this reaction a Lewis acid Lewis base complex called informally boron tnfluonde etherate may look unusual but it is a stable species with properties different from those of the reactants Its boiling point (126°C) for example is much higher than that of boron tnfluonde—a gas with a boiling point of — 100°C—and diethyl ether a liquid that boils at 34°C... 

The chloromethylated polystyrene resin used for Merrifteld solid-phase peptide synthesis is prepared by treatment of polystyrene with chloromethyl methyl ether and a Lewis acid catalyst. Propose a mechanism for the reaction. 

The synthesis of 3-aryltetrahydroisoquinolines was accomplished by electrophilic aromatic substitution of polysubstituted phenols and phenyl ethers with Lewis acid-generated tosyliminium ions of 2-tosyl-3-methoxytetrahydroisoquinoline derivatives <00SL801>. In addition isoquinoline was reported to react with N-tosylated (R)- or (S)-amino acid fluorides to afford optically active dihydroimidazoisoquinolinones. The reaction proceeds via acylation followed by attack of the tosylamino group at Cl of the intermediate 2-tosylaminoacylisoquinolinium salt <00TL5479>. 

BF, or BF3 etherate can replace TiCl4 as the Lewis acid. But in order to effect clean reactions, the Lewis acid should be added to the aldehyde before addition of the lead reagent. The rate of reaction is highly dependent on the size of the R group. Transfer of an ethyl group is rapid, but a cyclohexyl group is transferred slowly even at 0°. Similar transfer does not obtain with R4Sn. 

Shackelford and co-workers studied the 1,2-addition of 2,2-dinitropropanol, 2,2,2-trinitroethanol, and 2-fluoro-2,2-dinitroethanol across the double bonds of vinyl ethers. These reactions are Lewis acid catalyzed because of the weak nucleophilic character of alcohols which contain two or three electron-withdrawing groups on the carbon p to the hydroxy functionality. Base catalysis is precluded since alkaline conditions lead to deformylation with the formation of formaldehyde and the nitronate salt. 

The ene reaction is strongly catalyzed by Lewis acids such as aluminum chloride and diethylaluminum chloride204 Coordination by the aluminum at the carbonyl group increases the electrophihcity of the conjugated system and allows reaction to occur below room temperature, as illustrated in Entry 6. Intramolecular ene reactions can be carried out under either thermal (Entry 3) or catalyzed (Entry 7) conditions 205 Formaldehyde in acidic solution can form allylic alcohols, as in entry 1. Other carbonyl ene reactions are carried out with Lewis acid catalysts. Aromatic aldehydes and acrolein undergo the ene reaction with activated alkenes such as enol ethers in the presence of Yb(fod)3 206 Sc(03SCF3)3 has also been used to catalyze ene reactions.207... 

The reaction of substituted vinylferrocenes with chloromethyl alkyl ethers catalysed by Lewis acids proceeds via an exo attack to furnish stabilized ferrocenylcarbocations (analogous to benzyl), which are captured by a nucleophile, again in an exo fashion. As a result, the whole sequence occurs predominantly with retention of configuration389. 

Minkwitz et al.604 have prepared the hexafluorometalates of cations 308. The reaction of a,a-dichloromethyl methyl ether in HF-Lewis acid solution at —78°C leads to the formation of chloro cation 308-C1, whereas at -65°C fluoro derivative 308-F is isolated as a result of chlorine-fluorine exchange [Eq. (3.80)]. Interestingly, the chlorine atom and the methyl group are trans in the hexafluoroantimonate salt of cation 308-C1, whereas the fluorine atom and the methyl group are cis in cation 308-F. The arrangement of the C—O—C—H atoms is nearly planar with F/Cl—C—O—C torsion angles of 2.84° (308-F) and 179.0° (308-C1). The C Obond distances (1.224 and 1.479 A for cation 308-F, and 1.252 and 1.517 A for cation 308-C1) reveal dominant oxonium ion character. 

An intramolecular cyclization of iV-anilino- and iV-benzyl-substituted propargyl trimethylsilyl ethers with Lewis acid catalysis provides the quinolines and isoquinolines, respectively <20040L2361>. An intramolecular aza-Diels-Alder reaction has been used as a key step in the synthesis of luotonin (Scheme 69) <20040L4913>. An analogous reaction afforded the dihydroquinoline as a single diastereomer (Equation 132) <2000TL5715>. 

Moderate yields of 3-hydroxyalkylthiochromones 521 result from a tandem Michael-aldol reaction of l-(2-methyl-s111 I d n y I phenv l)propvnone with aldehydes in the presence of two moles of BF3 etherate as a Lewis acid. The process involves a 6-emfo-dig cyclization (Equation 181) <2002TL7039, 2005PS(180)989>. 

Regioselective debenzylation can be achieved by treatment with Lewis acids such as ferric chloride and S11CI4 or under acetolysis conditions with acetic anhydride and sulfuric acid, and several examples are depicted in Scheme 2.3.9 Acetolysis results in cleavage of the most acid-sensitive benzyl group. In general, primary benzyl ethers can be selectively acetolysed in the presence of secondary benzyl ethers. The regioselectivity of the reaction can be explained as follows sulfuric acid protonates acetic anhydride followed by the formation of an acetyl ion and acetic acid. The acetyl ion reacts with the sterically most accessible oxygen which is at... 

In consideration of conceivable strategies for the more direct construction of these derivatives, nitriles can be regarded as simple starting materials with which the 3+2 cycloaddition of acylcarbenes would, in a formal sense, provide the desired oxazoles. Oxazoles, in fact, have previously been obtained by the reaction of diazocarbonyl compounds with nitriles through the use of boron trifluoride etherate as a Lewis acid promoter. Other methods for attaining oxazoles involve thermal, photochemical, or metal-catalyzed conditions.12 Several recent studies have indicated that many types of rhodium-catalyzed reactions of diazocarbonyl compounds proceed via formation of electrophilic rhodium carbene complexes as key intermediates rather than free carbenes or other types of reactive intermediates.13 If this postulate holds for the reactions described here, then the mechanism outlined in Scheme 2 may be proposed, in which the carbene complex 3 and the adduct 4 are formed as intermediates.14... 

In the Mukaiyama aldol reaction an aldehyde (1) reacts with a silyl enol ether (3) under Lewis-acid catalysis to yield the aldol adduct (4). The use of a chiral Lewis acid (L offers the opportunity to perform the reaction in an a.sym-metric manner (Scheme 1) [5]. 

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