Hydrocarbons, aromatic dimer formation

Examples of monocation dimer formation among aromatic hydrocarbons have been confined mostly to alternant hydrocarbons, and the dimer can be regarded as an association of two closed shell molecules which have lost an electron. Recently Paskovich and Reddoch (1972) made a new class of monocation dimers, in which an electron is missing from two associated open shell molecules. Oxidation of phenalene by oxygen led to the phenalenyl radical and, it is thought, to the phenalenyl cation, association of which gave the monocation dimer (93). 

None of the chlorophosphetane is produced in the absence of the AICI3, and the amount of the latter employed has a marked influence on the product yield thus if the ratio of the three reactants alkene, PCI3 and AICI3 was 1 1 0.75 the yield was about 50%, the yield was about 80% if the ratio was 1 1 1 and > 95% if it was 1 1 1.25. Replacement of the dichloromethane solvent by either a pure aliphatic or aromatic hydrocarbon prevented phosphetane formation, and the use of 1,2-dichloroethane gave some phosphetane together with some dimerized alkene. 

The methodology for preparation of hydrocarbon-soluble, dilithium initiators is generally based on the reaction of an aromatic divinyl precursor with two moles of butyUithium. Unfortunately, because of the tendency of organ olithium chain ends in hydrocarbon solution to associate and form electron-deficient dimeric, tetrameric, or hexameric aggregates (see Table 2) (33,38,44,67), attempts to prepare dilithium initiators in hydrocarbon media have generally resulted in the formation of insoluble, three-dimensionally associated species (34,66,68—72). These precipitates are not effective initiators because of their heterogeneous initiation reactions with monomers which tend to result in broader molecular weight distributions > 1.1)... 

Anodic oxidation in inert solvents is the most widespread method of cation-radical preparation, with the aim of investigating their stability and electron structure. However, saturated hydrocarbons cannot be oxidized in an accessible potential region. There is one exception for molecules with the weakened C—H bond, but this does not pertain to the cation-radical problem. Anodic oxidation of unsaturated hydrocarbons proceeds more easily. As usual, this oxidation is assumed to be a process including one-electron detachment from the n system with the cation-radical formation. This is the very first step of this oxidation. Certainly, the cation-radical formed is not inevitably stable. Under anodic reaction conditions, it can expel the second electron and give rise to a dication or lose a proton and form a neutral (free) radical. The latter can be either stable or complete its life at the expense of dimerization, fragmentation, etc. Nevertheless, electrochemical oxidation of aromatic hydrocarbons leads to cation-radicals, the nature of which is reliably established (Mann and Barnes 1970 Chapter 3). 

Excimer formation can serve as a sensitive probe of group proximities Excimers make evident the interaction of an excited molecule M, (typically an aromatic hydrocarbon), with a molecule in the ground state M producing an excited dimer Mf (or D ). The dimer must be formed within the lifetime of the excited species (e.g., for pyrene derivatives, about 100 nsec). For molecules such as pyrene, excimer formation and fluorescence are contingent on attainment of a well-defined steric arrangement in the dimer.41... 

Photodimerization involves 1 1 adduct formation between an excited nd a ground state molecule. Olefinic compounds, aromatic hydrocarbons, conjugated dienes, oc-unsaturated compounds are known to dimerize when Cxpdsed to suitable radiation. Photodimerization of olefinic compounds Can occur by either (a) 1,2-1,2 addition, (b) 1,2-1,4 addition or... 

Neither the relative number of benzylic hydrogens nor the base strength accounts for the slow oxidation rate of the methylnaphthalenes. Formation of radicals in the presence of aromatic hydrocarbons can lead to radical attack on the aromatic ring. Addition of phenyl or methyl radical to the ring gives a cyclohexadienyl radical that may disproportionate or dimerize, or undergo hydrogen abstraction by another radical (3, 9,13). 

Pyrolysis of acetylene to a mixture of aromatic hydrocarbons has been the subject of many studies, commencing with the work of Berthelot in 1866 (1866a, 1866b). The proposed mechanisms have ranged from formation of CH fragments by fission of acetylene (Bone and Coward, 1908) to free-radical chain reactions initiated by excitation of acetylene to its lowest-lying triplet state (Palmer and Dormisch, 1964 Palmer et al., 1966) and polymerization of monomeric or dimeric acetylene biradicals (Minkoff, 1959 see also Cullis et al., 1962). Photosensitized polymerization of acetylene and acetylene-d2 and isotopic analysis of the benzene produced indicated involvement of both free-radical and excited state mechanisms (Tsukuda and Shida, 1966). 

Recently, several nucleophilic reagents have been used to establish the mode of action of the metabolites of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH). Among them, several phosphodiesters have been examined to clarify the possibility of reaction of PAH epoxides with the phosphate groups(P-alkylation) of nucleic acids (22). In this context we have studied the reaction of 3,4-epoxyprecocene II with dibenzyl phosphate under a variety of conditions. In all cases, instead of the formation of phenol or phosphotriesters observed with PAH epoxides, we obtained predominantly dimer XI. This compound was also the main component of the mixtures obtained by reaction of the above precocene epoxide with other acid catalysts, along with dimers XII and XII. Dimer XII was formed almost exclusively by thermal treatment. The structure and configuration for compound XII has been established by spectral and X-ray diffraction analyses (23). 

The irradiation of aromatic compounds results in considerably lower yields of radiolysis products than does irradiation of aliphatic compounds of similar molecular weight and functional group composition. This has been attributed to effectiveness of the delocalized 7t-orbitals in accommodating excitation energy without permitting the molecule to dissociate. Nevertheless, some radiolysis does occur. Benzene is known to yield biphenyl, phenylcyclohexadiene, and a polymeric material of average composition (C6H7) which behaves as if it were an unsaturated hydrocarbon. Dimerization and polymer formation are also characteristic of the radiation... 

The radical cations initially formed during the direct oxidation of hydrocarbons [Eq. (1)] are highly reactive species, and their formation is usually followed by a fast reaction in solution. This involves typically a nucleophile (Nu or NuH) or a base (B), resulting in the formation of either an addition product, I, or an elimination product, II, as illustrated by Eqs. (2) and (3). Reaction (2) may be observed for almost any radical cation when a suitable nucleophile is present, whereas reaction (3) is typically observed for alkyl-substituted aromatic hydrocarbons having at least one hydrogen atom in an a position. Other common follow-up reactions are dimerization [Eq. (4)] and the coupling of a radical cation and a molecule of substrate [Eq. (5)]. The neutral molecule in Eq. (5) may also be a hydrocarbon different from R-H ... 

Reductive dimerization of unactivated aromatic hydrocarbons is rare, although, for example, formation of 9,9, 10,10 -tetrahydro-9,9 -biphenanthrene ( 40%) upon reduction of phenanthrene in DMF has been reported [246]. 

By comparing the results for chlorinated polypropylene with those for polypropylene, it can be concluded that the two materials undergo very different pyrolytic reactions. Typical for polypropylene is the formation of fragments of the polymeric backbone with formation of monomer, dimer, etc., or with cleavage of the backbone in random places and formation of compounds with 3n, 3n-1, and 3n+1 carbon atoms (see Section 6.1). Pyrolysis of the chlorinated compound leads to a significant amount of HCI and also char. Very few chlorinated compounds are identified in the pyrolysate, since the elimination of HCI leaves very few chlorine atoms bound to carbons. Some aromatic hydrocarbons are formed by a mechanism similar to that of poly(vinyl chloride) pyrolysis. The elimination of HCI leads to the formation of double bonds, and the breaking of the carbon backbone leads to cyclization and formation of aromatic compounds. The reactions involved in this process are shown below for the case of formation of 1,3-dimethylbenzene ... 

A spiro cyclic hydrocarbon compound, o-xylylene dimer, could also undergo R-ROP to give poly(o-xylylene) due to the formation of a stable benzyl radical and an aromatic ring (37). 

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