1,4-Hexadiene synthesis rhodium

The rhodium-catalyzed addition of ethylene to 1,3-butadiene to yield 1,4-hexadiene (5a, 151) proceeds via a similar mechanism (151) with the exception that, upon formation of the alkylrhodium(III) species, the hexadiene synthesis proceeds without further change in the oxidation state of the metal. In these reactions with butadiene the coordinated alkyl groups are either chelate or 7r-allyl structures which appear to stabilize Rh(III) (151). The addition of propylene to butadiene and isoprene to produce [Pg.297]

The du Pont 1,4-Hexadiene Synthesis. An important industrial process for the synthesis of 1,4-hexadiene, a component of ternary rubbers, illustrates a different type of mechanism, which is more closely related to the processes -discussed- in-the -previous Sections. The-synthesis involves-the -reaction- of- -ethylene and butadiene and may be carried out by using rhodium chloride in ethanolic hydrogen chloride solution or by nickel(O) phosphite complexes in acid solution.80... 

For the synthesis of permethric acid esters 16 from l,l-dichloro-4-methyl-l,3-pentadiene and of chrysanthemic acid esters from 2,5-dimethyl-2,4-hexadienes, it seems that the yields are less sensitive to the choice of the catalyst 72 77). It is evident, however, that Rh2(OOCCF3)4 is again less efficient than other rhodium acetates. The influence of the alkyl group of the diazoacetate on the yields is only marginal for the chrysanthemic acid esters, but the yield of permethric acid esters 16 varies in a catalyst-dependent non-predictable way when methyl, ethyl, n-butyl or f-butyl diazoacetate are used77). 

The oldest syntheses of chrysanthemates are those starting from 2,5-dimethyl-2,4-hexadiene (238). There have been more papers on the use of rhodium or antimony to catalyze the addition of diazoacetate and chiral copper complexes to create asymmetry during the addition (see Vol. 4, p. 482, Refs. 219-222). The problem with this route is to avoid the use of diazo compounds. An old synthesis of Corey and Jautelat used the ylide addition of a sulfurane to a suitable precursor (in this case a C3 unit was added to methyl 5-methyl-2,4-hexadienoate, 239), and a recent paper gives details about the addition of ethyl dimethylsulfuranylideneacetate to 2,5-dimethyl-4-hexen-3-one (240). This led exclusively to the tran -isomer 241, from which ethyl trans-chrysanthemate (185, R = Et) was made. Other ylide additions are mentioned below. 

A similar insertion of ethylene into a C—M bond of a w-butenyl complex seems to occur in the industrial synthesis of hexadienes from butadiene and ethylene, at least with rhodium and nickel compounds. These catalysts give tra f-l,4-hexadiene as the initial product 178). Cobalt and iron catalysts give the cis isomer 179,180), probably by a different mechanism. 

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