Imine salts from carboxylic acids

The presence of highly electronegative atoms which can participate in hydrogen bonding is required for the solubility of polymers in water. Such groups include amines, imines, ethers, alcohols, sulfates, carboxylic acids and associated salts, and, to a lesser extent, thiols. The water solubility is also affected by pH and the formation of charged species. Thus the copolymer derived from vinylamine and vinyl sulfonate is not soluble in water, whereas the corresponding sodium salt of this copolymer is water-soluble. 

Many examples of the usual route to /S-lactams via imines and acid chlorides, ketens, or keten equivalents have appeared.These include syntheses of 3-[bis(alkylthio)methylenamino]-2-azetidinones, ° of spiro-azetidinones and bis-azetidinones, and the use of l-methyl-2-halogenopyridinium salts to activate carboxylic acids towards coupling with imines. A non-hazardous alternative route to 3-amido-2-azetidinones, avoiding the use of azidoacetyl chloride, involves the reaction of Schiff bases with salts of [(a-methyl-/3-methoxycar-bonyl)vinylamino]acetic acid, e.g. (20), in the presence of ethyl chloroformate, as shown in Scheme 5. Formaldimines can be generated from their trimers by treatment with Lewis acids immediately prior to reaction with acid chlorides, so allowing the formation of the nocardicin nucleus which is unsubstituted at C-4. ... 

Extension of this work to the diastereoselective synthesis of y-lactams from N-sulfonyl aldimines [93] and ketimines [94] was subsequently reported. Scheldt and coworkers disclosed an enantioselective version (up to 98% ee) from reactive hydrazones in the initial demonstration of cooperative NHC/Lewis acid catalysis using a bulky, chiral triazolium salt and catalytic Mg(OBu )2 [95]. Rovis and coworkers synthesized y-lactams 109 enantioselectively using a chiral N-C Fs triazolium salt (Scheme 18.19). A weak carboxylate base was sufficient to partially deprotonate the precatalyst 108 in situ, and the carboxylic acid formed could activate the N-Ar imine acceptor 107 via protonation [lib]. In all these cases, a fine balance must exist between sufficient electrophilicity vis-a-vis the competing enal and reversible addition of the carbene to the imine/hydrazone/iminium or to the Lewis acid. 

These are the most favourable of all and the precursors, such as the hydroxy acids, e.g. 15, cannot usually be isolated, though the carboxylate salts are stable. The only important thing is to get the oxidation level of the precursor right. Using cyclic amines as examples, a fully saturated ring 45 would come from an alkylation reaction on 46 X = a leaving group. Imines 47 or enamines 49 would come from aldehydes or ketones 48. 

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