Insertion of carbenes

Rh(Por)l (Por = OEP. TPP, TMP) also acts as a catalyst for the insertion of carbene fragments into the O—H bonds of alcohols, again using ethyl diazoacetate as the carbene source. A rhodium porphyrin carbene intermediate was proposed in the reaction, which is more effective for primary than secondary or tertiary alcohols, and with the bulky TMP ligand providing the most selectivity. ... 

In contrast to the situation on flash pyrolysis, methyleneoxophosphoranes generated by thermolysis or photolysis in the presence of protic nucleophiles can be directly trapped to form corresponding derivatives of phosphinic acid (17- 19) however, the possibility of competing insertion of carbenes into the H/X bond of the additives is always present, giving phosphine oxides with X in the a-position (16- 18). Reaction branching at the carbene 16 was first observed on photolysis of 7 in water 13) and prompted detailed investigations on the phosphorylcarbene/ methyleneoxophosphorane rearrangement. 

The equilibrium interconversion between an ethylene phosphite and a bicyclic spirophosphorane is shown to proceed by the insertion of the phosphite into the labile O-H bond of the hydroxyethyl ester. The mechanism is similar to the insertion of carbenes or nitrenes. Energy relationships of reaction intermediates were studied by MO RHF, MP2(full), MP4SDTQ, and DFT calculations. In most cases, they predicted that hydroxyethyl ethylene phosphates were more stable than the strained spirophosphoranes, which is not supported by the experimental evidence. The best correspondence to experimental data was obtained by DFT calculations with Perdew-Wang correlation functions <2003JST35>. 

Rh2(OAc)4 has become the catalyst of choice for insertion of carbene moieties into the N—H bond of (3-lactams. Two cases of intermolecular reaction have been reported. The carbene unit derived from alkyl aryldiazoacetates 322 seems to be inserted only into the ring N—H bond of 323 246). Similarly, N-malonyl- 3-lactams 327 are available from diazomalonic esters 325 and (3-lactams 326 297). If, however, the acetate function in 326 is replaced by an alkylthio or arylthio group, C/S insertion rather than N/H insertion takes place (see Sect. 7.2). Reaction of ethyl diazoacetoacetate 57b with 328 also yields an N/H insertion product (329) 298>, rather than ethyl l-aza-4-oxa-3-methyl-7-oxabicyclo[3.2.0]hex-2-ene-2-earboxylate, as had been claimed before 299). 

Thus, the reaction of (Th[(CH3>5C5]2 2 2 (JJL) with the organoactinide dihaptoacyls was investigated to learn whether the inserted carbon monoxide was susceptible to any unusual modes of hydride reduction. In particular, analogues to the well-known insertion of carbenes into metal and metalloid hydride bonds (59,60) would offer a means to functionalize the acyl carbon atom. 

INSERTION OF CARBENES INTO C-H BONDS OF ALKOXIDES Akira Oku and Toshiro Harada 287... 

Electrophilic carbene complexes can react with amines, alcohols or thiols to yield the products of a formal X-H bond insertion (X N, O, S). Unlike the insertion of carbene complexes into aliphatic C-H bonds, insertion into X-H bonds can proceed via intermediate formation of ylides (Figure 4.7). 

Figure 14.9. (a) Orbital correlation diagram for the direct insertion of carbene into an olefin to form cyclopropane. Symmetry classification is with respect to the vertical bisecting mirror plane. (b) State correlation diagram showing the intended correlations and the avoided crossing of states So and S2. 

For a review of the intramolecular insertions of carbenes or carbenoids generated from diazocarbonyl compounds, sec Burke Grieco Org. React. 1979,26, 361-475. 

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