From sulfonates

Nitdles may be prepared by several methods (1). The first nitrile to be prepared was propionitdle, which was obtained in 1834 by distilling barium ethyl sulfate with potassium cyanide. This is a general preparation of nitriles from sulfonate salts and is referred to as the Pelou2e reaction (2). Although not commonly practiced today, dehydration of amides has been widely used to produce nitriles and was the first commercial synthesis of a nitrile. The reaction of alkyl hahdes with sodium cyanide to produce nitriles (eq. 1) also is a general reaction with wide appHcabiUty ... 

The elimination from sulfonates of secondary alcohols is frequently easier than more direct methods applied to the free alcohols. As with the latter, there are the possibilities of isomeric olefin formation and rearrangement reactions. In addition, displacement and hydrolysis may occur, but these side reactions can usually be suppressed. 

Olefin formation by elimination from sulfonate esters, 331... 

Metal halide salts other than sodium iodide have been used sparsely to prepare halodeoxy sugars from sulfonate esters. Lithium chloride (107) and lithium bromide (33) have found limited application. Potassium fluoride (dihydrate) in absolute methanol has been used (51, 52) to introduce fluorine atoms in terminal positions of various D-glucose derivatives. The reaction is conducted in sealed tube systems and requires... 

Predict the major product(s) you would obtain from sulfonation of the following compounds ... 

It should be mentioned here that if no other leaving group is present, sulfonyl can act as its own leaving group in hydroxide- or alkoxide-catalyzed elimination from sulfones. Carbanion formation is not involved in this but the promotion of the ionization of a C—H bond by the sulfonyl group is seen at the /1-carbon rather than the a-carbon, e.g. equation 21. 

Sulfur-containing groups at an a-position stabilize carbanions. All these species, i.e., the a-sulfonyl 6281-102, a-sulfmyl 6346-80, a-sulfenyl 645,103,104 and a-sulfonio carbanions 65105-1 ancj those derived from sulfonates 66 and sulfonamides 6795 may retain their... 

Upaeglis A. and O Shea F.X., Thermoplastic elastomer compounds from sulfonated EPDM ionomers. Rubber Chem. TechnoL, 61, 223, 1988. 

SUCCINONITRILE, a,/3-DIPHENYL-, 32, 63 Sulfonyl chloride from sulfonic acid, 30, 58... 

DTA shows that the reaction mixture from sulfonation of the nitro compound in 20% oleum, containing 35 wt% of 2-chloro-5-nitrobenzenesulfonic acid, exhibits 2 exothermic stages at 100 and 220° C, respectively, the latter being violently rapid. The adiabatic reaction mixture, initially at 89° attained 285°C with boiling after 17 h. At 180° the induction period was about 20 min [1], Sulfonation of 4-chloronitrobenzene with 65% oleum at 46°C led to a runaway decomposition... 

Nitroalkenes react with lithium dianions of carboxylic acids or with hthium enolates at -100 °C, and subsequent treatment of the Michael adducts with aqueous acid gives y-keto acids or esters in a one-pot operation, respectively (Eq. 4.52).66 The sequence of Michael addition to nitroalkenes and Nef reaction (Section 6.1) provides a useful tool for organic synthesis. For example, the addition of carbanions derived from sulfones to nitroalkenes followed by the Nef reaction and elimination of the sulfonyl group gives a,P-unsaturated ketones (Eq. 4.53).67... 

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