Ethers, trimethylsilyl alcohol protection

Acetals are useful because they can act as protecting groups for aldehydes and ketones in the same way that trimethylsilyl ethers act as protecting groups for alcohols (Section 17.8). As we saw previously, it sometimes happens that one functional group interferes with intended chemistry elsewhere... 

Noyori and coworkers found that tetrafluorosilane or trimethylsilyl tri-flate catalyzes the condensation of appropriately protected glycopyranosyl fluorides with trimethylsilyl ethers or alcohols. The strong affinity of silicon for fluorine was considered to be the driving force for this reaction. In the case of Sip4, attack of a nucleophile on the glycosyl cation-SiFj ion-pair intermediate was anticipated. Thus, condensation of 2,3,4,6-tetra-O-benzyl-a- and - -D-glucopyranosyl fluorides (47a and 47fi) with methyl... 

Silyl protecting groups are the gold standard for the protection of alcohols.234 Novel photochemically removable protection groups for alcohols have been developed by Brook et a/.23S and Pirrung et al,236 For instance, cyclo-pentanol can be reacted with tris(trimethylsilyl)chlorosilane 53 in the presence of a mild base to yield the protected silyl ether 54. The protection group can be removed conveniently upon UV irradiation or by the use of Bu4NF (Scheme 12). 

Dicarboxypyridinium chlorochromate (2,6-DCPCC)392 possesses an acidic character that allows the in situ deprotection and oxidation of alcohols, protected as tetrahydropyranyl and trimethylsilyl ethers. 2,2 -Bipyridinium chlorochromate (BPCC)393 contains a ligand that complexes efficiently with the reduced chromium species, generated during the oxidation of alcohols, allowing for a substantial simplification of the work-ups. For this reason, it enjoys a popularity among chlorochromates surpassed by only PCC. 

Trimethylsilyl ethers.2 These protective derivatives of alcohols are conveniently prepared with K2COj or Na2C03 as base and Aliquat 336 as the phase-transfer catalyst (65 95% yield). r-Butyldimethylsilyl ethers can be prepared in the same way. 

One of the most common methods of alcohol protection is reaction with chlorotrimethylsilane to yield a trimethylsilyl (TMS) ether. The reaction is carried out in the presence of a base (usually triethylamine) to help form the alkoxide anion from the alcohol and to remove the HCl by-product from the reaction. 

Triethylsilane can also facilitate the high yielding reductive formation of dialkyl ethers from carbonyls and silyl ethers. For example, the combination of 4-bromobenzaldehyde, trimethylsi-lyl protected benzyl alcohol, and EtsSiH in the presence of catalytic amounts of FeCls will result in the reduction and benzylation of the carbonyl group (eq 32). Similarly, Cu(OTf)2 has been shown to aid EtsSiH in the reductive etherification of variety of carbonyl compounds with w-octyl trimethylsilyl ether to give the alkyl ethers in moderate to good yields. Likewise, TMSOTf catalyzes the conversion of tetrahydrop)ranyl ethers to benzyl ethers with Ets SiH and benzaldehyde, and diphenylmethyl ethers with EtsSiH and diphenylmethyl formate. Symmetrical and unsymmetrical ethers are afforded in good yield from carbonyl compounds with silyl ethers (or alcohols) and EtsSiH catalyzed by bismuth trihalide salts. An intramolecular version of this procedure has been nicely applied to the construction of cA-2,6-di- and trisubstituted tetrahydropyrans. ... 

Benzyl trichloracetimidate (48) is a new reagent for acid-catalysed benzylation of alcohols in the presence of trifluoromethanesulphonic acid, and benzyl p-toluenesulphonate-potassium carbonate has been recommended as abenzylat-ing system for phenols, especially in cases where benzyl chloride-potassium carbonate gives C-alkylated impurities.Facile removal of benzyl ether protecting groups has been achieved by catalytic transfer hydrogenation with Pd(OH)2 on carbon and cyclohexene as hydrogen-donor. A new procedure for O-tritylation by treatment of an alcohol trimethylsilyl ether with trityl trimethylsilyl ether is shown in equation (6). The synthesis and characterization has been completed of 4-dimethylamino-N-triphenylmethylpyridinium chloride (49)," a postulated intermediate in the formation of trityl ethers from alcohols... 

Silyl ethers play a very important role as hydroxyl-protecting groups. Alcohols can be easily converted to trimethylsilyl ethers by reaction with trimethylsilyl chloride in the presence of an amine or by heating with hexamethyldisilazane. f-Butyldimethylsilyl ethers are also of considerable use as alcohol-protecting groups. The increased steric bulk of the r-butyldimethylsilyl group improves the... 

Another common method for alcohol protection is reaction with RjSiCl to give a silyl ether. Reaction conditions usually involve RjSiCl, with 4-dimethylaminopyridine (DMAP) as the base. Both the ease of preparation of the silyl ether and the stability of the protected species depend on the nature of the R groups. Trimethylsilyl ethers (ROTMS) are very labile and readily removed with water and dilute acid. The triethylsilyl group (ROTES) is a little more robust but may be removed with fluoride ion (the use of fluoride to cleave silyl groups reflects the strength of the Si-F bond). r-BuMejSiCl (TBDMSCl) reacts selectively with... 

The most stable protected alcohol derivatives are the methyl ethers. These are often employed in carbohydrate chemistry and can be made with dimethyl sulfate in the presence of aqueous sodium or barium hydroxides in DMF or DMSO. Simple ethers may be cleaved by treatment with BCI3 or BBr, but generally methyl ethers are too stable to be used for routine protection of alcohols. They are more useful as volatile derivatives in gas-chromatographic and mass-spectrometric analyses. So the most labile (trimethylsilyl ether) and the most stable (methyl ether) alcohol derivatives are useful in analysis, but in synthesis they can be used only in exceptional cases. In synthesis, easily accessible intermediates of medium stability are most helpful. 

Me3SiCH2CH=CH2i TsOH, CH3CN, 70-80°, 1-2 h, 90-95% yield. This silylating reagent is stable to moisture. Allylsilanes can be used to protect alcohols, phenols, and carboxylic acids there is no reaction with thiophenol except when CF3S03H is used as a catalyst. The method is also applicable to the formation of r-butyldimethylsilyl derivatives the silyl ether of cyclohexanol was prepared in 95% yield from allyl-/-butyldi-methylsilane. Iodine, bromine, trimethylsilyl bromide, and trimethylsilyl iodide have also been used as catalysts. Nafion-H has been shown to be an effective catalyst. 

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