Ethylene Diels-Alder reaction

Figure 5.60 The transition-state region of the reaction profile (along the IRC) for the model butadiene + ethylene Diels-Alder reaction. (The zero of energy corresponds to the cyclohexene product.)...

Diels-Alder Reaction In the manner similar to cycloaddition of ethylene Diels-Alder reaction can be analysed which involves Jt-molecular orbitals of butadiene and ethylene. 

Compounds containing a double or triple bond, usually activated by additional unsaturation (carbonyl, cyano, nitro, phenyl, etc.) In the ap position, add to the I 4-positions of a conjugated (buta-1 3-diene) system with the formation of a ax-membered ring. The ethylenic or acetylenic compound is known as the dieTwphile and the second reactant as the diene the product is the adduct. The addition is generally termed the Diels-Alder reaction or the diene synthesis. The product in the case of an ethylenic dienophile is a cyctohexene and in that of an acetylenic dienophile is a cyctohexa-1 4-diene. The active unsaturated portion of the dienophile, or that of the diene, or those in both, may be involved in rings the adduct is then polycyclic. 

The simplest of all Diels-Alder reactions cycloaddition of ethylene to 1 3 butadi ene does not proceed readily It has a high activation energy and a low reaction rate Substituents such as C=0 or C=N however when directly attached to the double bond of the dienophile increase its reactivity and compounds of this type give high yields of Diels-Alder adducts at modest temperatures... 

Contrast the Diels-Alder reaction with a cycloaddition reaction that looks superfl cially similar the combination of two ethylene molecules to give cyclobutane... 

Heteroatom functionalized terpene resins are also utilized in hot melt adhesive and ink appHcations. Diels-Alder reaction of terpenic dienes or trienes with acrylates, methacrylates, or other a, P-unsaturated esters of polyhydric alcohols has been shown to yield resins with superior pressure sensitive adhesive properties relative to petroleum and unmodified polyterpene resins (107). Limonene—phenol resins, produced by the BF etherate-catalyzed condensation of 1.4—2.0 moles of limonene with 1.0 mole of phenol have been shown to impart improved tack, elongation, and tensile strength to ethylene—vinyl acetate and ethylene—methyl acrylate-based hot melt adhesive systems (108). Terpene polyol ethers have been shown to be particularly effective tackifiers in pressure sensitive adhesive appHcations (109). 

Conjugation as well as geometric and positional isomerization occur when an alkadienoic acid such as linoleic acid is treated with a strong base at an elevated temperature. CycHc fatty acids result from isomerization of linolenic acid ia strong base at about 250°C (58). Conjugated fatty acids undergo the Diels-Alder reaction with many dienophiles including ethylene, propylene, acryUc acid, and maleic anhydride. 

Elastomers. Ethylene—propylene terpolymer (diene monomer) elastomers (EPDM) use a variety of third monomers during polymerization (see Elastomers, ethyiene-propylene-diene rubber). Ethyhdenenorbomene (ENB) is the most important of these monomers and requires dicyclopentadiene as a precursor. ENB is synthesized in a two step preparation, ie, a Diels-Alder reaction of CPD (via cracking of DCPD) with butadiene to yield 5-vinylbicyclo[2.2.1]-hept-2-ene [3048-64-4] (7) where the external double bond is then isomerized catalyticaHy toward the ring yielding 5-ethyhdenebicyclo[2.2.1]-hept-2-ene [16219-75-3] (ENB) (8) (60). 

Cycloaddition involves the combination of two molecules in such a way that a new ring is formed. The principles of conservation of orbital symmetry also apply to concerted cycloaddition reactions and to the reverse, concerted fragmentation of one molecule into two or more smaller components (cycloreversion). The most important cycloaddition reaction from the point of view of synthesis is the Diels-Alder reaction. This reaction has been the object of extensive theoretical and mechanistic study, as well as synthetic application. The Diels-Alder reaction is the addition of an alkene to a diene to form a cyclohexene. It is called a [47t + 27c]-cycloaddition reaction because four tc electrons from the diene and the two n electrons from the alkene (which is called the dienophile) are directly involved in the bonding change. For most systems, the reactivity pattern, regioselectivity, and stereoselectivity are consistent with describing the reaction as a concerted process. In particular, the reaction is a stereospecific syn (suprafacial) addition with respect to both the alkene and the diene. This stereospecificity has been demonstrated with many substituted dienes and alkenes and also holds for the simplest possible example of the reaction, that of ethylene with butadiene ... 

Table 12.1 Diels-Alder reaction of butadiene and ethylene to form cyclohexene...

Let us finally consider two Z-matrices for optimization to transition structures, the Diels-Alder reaction of butadiene and ethylene, and the [l,5]-hydrogen shift in Z-1,3-pentadiene. To enforce the symmetries of the TSs (Cj in both cases) it is again advantageous to use dummy atoms. 

For the ordinary Diels-Alder reaction the dienophile preferentially is of the electron-poor type electron-withdrawing substituents have a rate enhancing effect. Ethylene and simple alkenes are less reactive. Substituent Z in 2 can be e.g. CHO, COR, COOH, COOR, CN, Ar, NO2, halogen, C=C. Good dienophiles are for example maleic anhydride, acrolein, acrylonitrile, dehydrobenzene, tetracya-noethylene (TCNE), acetylene dicarboxylic esters. The diene preferentially is of the electron-rich type thus it should not bear an electron-withdrawing substituent. 

The synthesis of bisantrene begins with Diels-Alder reaction of anthracene (52) and ethylene... 

What stereochemistry would you expect for the product of the Diels-Alder reaction between (2 ,4 )-2,4-hexadiene and ethylene What stereochemistry would you expect if (2 ,4Z)-2,4-hexadiene were used instead ... 

The rates of intermolecular Diels-Alder reactions of hydrophobic dienes and dienophiles are significantly increased when the cycloadditions are performed in pure ethylene glycol (EG) [49a]. Some examples are illustrated in Scheme 6.30. This performance is due to the fact that the EG (i) forms extensive hydrogen bonding, (ii) is able to solubilize hydrophobic dienes and dienophiles, and (hi) forms molecular aggregations with the reactants. 

Diels-Alder Reactions of the 2(llT)-Pyrazinone Scaffold with Ethylenes. . 281... 

Scheme 21 Diels-Alder reactions of the pyrazinone scaffold with ethylene gas...

In the Diels-Alder reaction a double bond adds 1,4 to a conjugated diene (a 2 + 4 cycloaddition), so the product is always a six-membered ring. The double-bond compound is called a dienophile. The reaction is easy and rapid and of very broad scope and reactivity of dienes and dienophiles can be predicted based on analysis of the HOMOs and LUMOs of these species. Ethylene and simple alkenes make poor dienophiles, although the reaction has been carried out with these compounds. 

The chemical reactions through cyclic transition states are controlled by the symmetry of the frontier orbitals [11]. At the symmetrical (Cs) six-membered ring transition state of Diels-Alder reaction between butadiene and ethylene, the HOMO of butadiene and the LUMO of ethylene (Scheme 18) are antisymmetric with respect to the reflection in the mirror plane (Scheme 24). The symmetry allows the frontier orbitals to have the same signs of the overlap integrals between the p-or-bital components at both reaction sites. The simultaneous interactions at the both sites promotes the frontier orbital interaction more than the interaction at one site of an acyclic transition state. This is also the case with interaction between the HOMO of ethylene and the LUMO of butadiene. The Diels-Alder reactions occur through the cyclic transition states in a concerted and stereospecific manner with retention of configuration of the reactants. 

Scheme 2 Diels-Alder reaction between 5-acetoxy-l,3-cyclopentadiene and ethylene...

Table 3 Bond lengths of C5-X and C5-CHj at the tamsition states in Diels-Alder reactions between 5-methyl-5-X-cyclopentadienes and ethylene (AMI)...

Ab initio calculation of Diels-Alder reactions of a series of 5-heteroatom substituted cyclopentadienes Cp-X (65 X = NH, 50 X = NH, 64 X = NH3, 67 X = O", 54 X = OH, 68 X = OH3% 69 X = PH, 51 X = PH, 70 X = PH3% 71 X = S, 55 X = SH, 72 X = SH/) with ethylene at HF/6-31++G(d)//HF/6-31-i i-G(d) level by BumeU and coworkers [37] provided counterexamples of the Cieplak effect. The calculation showed that ionization of substituents has a profound effect on the n facial selectivity deprotonation enhances syn addition and protonation enhances anti addition. The transition states for syn addition to the deprotonated dienes are stabilized relative to those of the neutral dienes, while those for anti addition are destabilized relative to those of the neutral dienes. On the other hand, activation energies for syn addition to the protonated dienes are similar to those of the neutral dienes, but those for anti addition are very much lowered relative to neutral dienes (Table 6). 

Table 6 Activation energies and Jt-facial selectivity in the Diels-Alder reactions of 5-X-cyclopentadienes with ethylene...

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