Hole-catalyzed cycloadditions oxidation

Thus the first electron transfer to Pb relates to the reaction (a) in Section 7.4.3.1.1, and the second involves the oxidation of the cyclobutyl radicals either by electron transfer/deprotonation with Cu" in equation (17) or by ligand transfer of chlorine with PlAci in equation (18). When the product of a generic reaction is itself a radical cation (such as in Sections 7.4.3.1.8 and 7.4.3.1.9), an electron-transfer chain or ETC process can ensue, as in the hole-catalyzed cycloadditions and autoxidations of dienes,The electron-transfer propagation sequence for the latter is simply given as in equations (19) and (20). 

Unlike thermal [2 + 2] cycloadditions which normally do not proceed readily unless certain structural features are present (see Section 1.3.1.1.), metal-catalyzed [2 + 2] cycloadditions should be allowed according to orbital symmetry conservation rules. There is now evidence that most metal-catalyzed [2 + 2] cycloadditions proceed stepwise via metallacycloalkanes as intermediates and both their formation and transformation are believed to occur by concerted processes. In many instances such reactions occur with high regioselectivity. Another mode for [2 + 2] cyclodimerization and cycloadditions involves radical cation intermediates (hole-catalyzed) obtained from oxidation of alkcnes by strong electron acceptors such as triarylammini-um radical cation salts.1 These reactions are similar to photochemical electron transfer (PET) initiated [2 + 2] cyclodimerization and cycloadditions in which an electron acceptor is used in the irradiation process.2 Because of the reversibility of these processes there is very little stereoselectivity observed in the cyclobutanes formed. 

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