Friedel-Crafts acid systems

In a generalized sense, acids are electron pair acceptors. They include both protic (Bronsted) acids and Lewis acids such as AlCb and BF3 that have an electron-deficient central metal atom. Consequently, there is a priori no difference between Bronsted (protic) and Lewis acids. In extending the concept of superacidity to Lewis acid halides, those stronger than anhydrous aluminum chloride (the most commonly used Friedel-Crafts acid) are considered super Lewis acids. These superacidic Lewis acids include such higher-valence fluorides as antimony, arsenic, tantalum, niobium, and bismuth pentafluorides. Superacidity encompasses both very strong Bronsted and Lewis acids and their conjugate acid systems. 

G-5 Aliphatic Petroleum Resins. Carbocationic polymerization of C-5 feedstreams has been accomptished with various Friedel-Crafts catalyst systems. Table 3 compares the efficiencies of selected Lewis acids ia the polymerization of a typical C-5 stream containing 43 wt % C-5—C-6 diolefias and 47 wt % C-5—C-6 olefins (20). Based on weight percent yield of resia at equimolar coaceatratioas of catalyst (5.62 mmol/100 g), efficieacy follows AICI3 AlBr3 > BF3etherate-H20 > TiCfy > SnCl. The most commonly used catalyst in petroleum resin synthesis is AlCl. ... 

In place of a proton source, ie, a Briimsted acid, a cation source such as an alkyl haUde, ester, or ether can be used in conjunction with a Friedel-Crafts acid. Initiation with the ether-based initiating systems in most cases involves the haUde derivative which arises upon fast haUdation by the Friedel-Crafts acid, MX (2). 

The mechanism of initiation in cationic polymerization using Friedel-Crafts acids appeared to be clarified by the discovery that most Friedel-Crafts acids, particularly haUdes of boron, titanium, and tin, require an additional cation source to initiate polymerization. Evidence has been accumulating, however, that in many systems Friedel-Crafts acids alone are able to initiate cationic polymerization. The polymerization of isobutylene for instance can be initiated, reportedly even in the absence of an added initiator, by AlBr or AlCl (19), TiCl ( )- Three fundamentally different... 

For systems which have been established by rigorous high vacuum experiments not to require the separate addition of cationogen, the use of Friedel-Crafts acid alone is recommended, ie EtA1C12/t-C Hg16, HCU/K Hg30. ... 

Carbocations formed through protonation of alkenes by proton acids are usually assumed as intermediates in alkylation with alkenes. Metal halides, when free of protic impurities, do not catalyze alkylation with alkenes except when a cocatalyst is present. It was shown that no neat conjugate Friedel-Crafts acids such as HA1C14 or HBF4 are formed from 1 1 molar compositions in the absence of excess HC1 or HF, or another proton acceptor.163-166 In the presence of a proton acceptor (alkene), however, the Lewis acid halides—hydrogen halide systems are readily able to generate carbocations ... 

The activity of an initiating system is also affected by the nature of the Friedel-Crafts acid. The following Friedel-Crafts acidity scale can he established BF, < AlCI, < TiCI4 < BCI, - SbFx < SbCL . BBr,. The advantage of the TiCL and the aluminum-based systems is their relative insensivity toward solvent polarity. The activity or the BCIt- or BBrt-based system is greatly solvent-dependent, i.e.. sufficient activity only occurs in polar solvent. 

Although it Wits long believed that most Friedel-Crafts acids, particularly halides of boron, titanium, and tin. require an additional cation source to initiate polymerization, recent results show that in many systems Friedel-Crafts acids alone are able lo initiate cationic polymerization. 

Thus, just as with the IB systems, the polymerization experiments with St included the investigation of the effect of time, temperature, electron donor concentration ([ED]), solvent polarity, Friedel-Crafts acid concentration ([MtX ]), and aging on polymerization rate (conversion), molecular weight, and molecular weight distribution. The experimental conditions together with the raw data are shown in Tables 12-19 in the Appendix. 

The most widely used Friedel-Crafts catalyst systems are HCkAlCT and HBr AlBr3. These systems are indeed superacids by Gillespie s deflnition. However, experiments directed toward preparation from aluminium halides and hydrogen halides of the composition HAIX4 were unsuccessful in providing evidence that such conjugate acids are formed in the absence of proton acceptor bases. 

Scheme 26.24 Cross-methathesis/acid-catalyzed Friedel-Crafts relay system.

Apart from Bronsted acid activation, the acetyl cation (and other acyl ions) can also be activated by Lewis acids. Although the 1 1 CH3COX-AIX3 Friedel-Crafts complex is inactive for the isomerization of alkanes, a system with two (or more) equivalents of AIX3 was fonnd by Volpin to be extremely reactive, also bringing abont other electrophilic reactions. 

We found a way to overcome charge-charge repulsion when activating the nitronium ion when Tewis acids were used instead of strong Bronsted acids. The Friedel-Crafts nitration of deactivated aromatics and some aliphatic hydrocarbons was efficiently carried out with the NO2CI/3AICI3 system. In this case, the nitronium ion is coordinated to AICI3. 

In superacidic media, the carbocationic iatermediates, which were long postulated to exist duting Friedel-Crafts type reactions (9—11) can be observed, and even isolated as salts. The stmctures of these carbocations have been studied ia high acidity—low nucleophilicity solvent systems usiag spectroscopic methods such as nmr, ir, Raman, esr, and x-ray crystallography. 

The inactivity of pure anhydrous Lewis acid haUdes in Friedel-Crafts polymerisation of olefins was first demonstrated in 1936 (203) it was found that pure, dry aluminum chloride does not react with ethylene. Subsequentiy it was shown (204) that boron ttifluoride alone does not catalyse the polymerisation of isobutylene when kept absolutely dry in a vacuum system. However, polymers form upon admission of traces of water. The active catalyst is boron ttifluoride hydrate, BF H20, ie, a conjugate protic acid H" (BF20H) . 

Metal Alibis and Alkoxides. Metal alkyls (eg, aluminum boron, sine alkyls) are fairly active catalysts. Hyperconjugation with the electron-deficient metal atom, however, tends to decrease the electron deficiency. The effect is even stronger in alkoxides which are, therefore, fairly weak Lewis acids. The present discussion does not encompass catalyst systems of the Ziegler-Natta type (such as AIR. -H TiCl, although certain similarities with Friedel-Crafts systems are apparent. 

Solid Superacids. Most large-scale petrochemical and chemical industrial processes ate preferably done, whenever possible, over soHd catalysts. SoHd acid systems have been developed with considerably higher acidity than those of acidic oxides. Graphite-intercalated AlCl is an effective sohd Friedel-Crafts catalyst but loses catalytic activity because of partial hydrolysis and leaching of the Lewis acid halide from the graphite. Aluminum chloride can also be complexed to sulfonate polystyrene resins but again the stabiUty of the catalyst is limited. 

In this appHcation, ZSM-5 acts as a strong, soHd acid, and may be viewed as supported on the surfaces of the crystalline zeoHte stmcture. The older, Friedel-Crafts aluminum chloride catalyzed process for ethylbenzene produces considerably more by-products and suffers from the corrosivity of the catalyst system. Because of the intermediate pore size of ZSM-5, those reactions that produce coke from larger molecules that cannot enter the ZSM-5 pore stmcture are significantly reduced, which greatly extends catalyst lifetime. 

All these kinetic results can be accommodated by a general mechanism that incorporates the following fundamental components (1) complexation of the alkylating agent and the Lewis acid (2) electrophilic attack on the aromatic substrate to form the a-complex and (3) deprotonation. In many systems, there m be an ionization of the complex to yield a discrete carbocation. This step accounts for the fact that rearrangement of the alkyl group is frequently observed during Friedel-Crafts alkylation. 

The initial series of major tranquilizers consists of alkylated derivatives of 4-aryl-4-hydroxypiperidines. Construction of this ring system is accomplished by a set of rather unusual reactions. Condensation of methylstyrenes with formaldehyde and ammonium chloride afford the corresponding hexahydro-1,3-oxazines (119). Heating these oxazines in the presence of acid leads to rearrangement with loss of water to the tetrahydropyridines. Scheme 1 shows a possible reaction pathway for these transformations. Addition of hydrogen bromide affords the expected 4-bromo compound (121). This last is easily displaced by water to lead to the desired alcohol (122) The side chain (123) is obtained by Friedel-Crafts acylation of p-fluorobenzene with 4-chloro-butyryl chloride. Alkylation of the appropriate arylpiperidinol with 123 affords the desired butyrophenone derivative. Thus,... 

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