Ketones from alkyne hydration

Interestingly, the product actually isolated from alkyne hydration is not the vinylic alcohol, or enol (ene + ol), but is instead a ketone. Although the enol is an intermediate in the reaction, it immediately rearranges to a ketone by a process called keto-enol tautomerisni. The individual keto and enol forms are said to be tautomers, a word used to describe constitutional isomers that interconvert rapidly. With few exceptions, the keto-enol tautomeric equilibrium lies on the side of the ketone enols are almost never isolated. We ll look more closely... 

The research reported by Hayashi13 14 indicated a highly efficient route for the preparation of ketones from alkynes via hydration ... 

By the example of 34 different alkynes, it was convincingly demonstrated that the product of the treatment of [PtCLJ with CO at 40-110 °C is a very powerful alkyne hydration catalyst some of the reactions are shown on Scheme 9.7 [25], The best medium for this transformation is THF containing 5 % H2O. The reaction can also be performed in a water-organic solvent two-phase system (e.g. with 1,2-dichloroethane), however in this case addition of a tetralkylammonium salt, such as Aliquat 336, is required to facilitate mass transfer between the phases. After the reaction with CO, the major part of platinum is present as H2[ Pt3(CO)6 n], but the catalytic effect was assigned to a putative mononuclear Pt-hydride, [PtHCl(CO)2], presumably formed from the cluster and some HCl (supplied by the reduction of [PtCU]). The hydration of terminal acetylenes follows Markovnikov s mle leading exclusively to aldehyde-free ketones. 

The reaction was rationalized by a ruthenium enolate mechanism (Fig. 4). Water served as a nucleophile and added to alkynes then the intermediate isomerized to give a ruthenium enolate, which then underwent addition to a-vinyl ketone followed by protonation to afford the 1,5-diketone. During the reaction, no ketone resulting from the hydration of the alkynes was found, which showed that the conjugate addition is faster than protonation of the ruthenium enolate in this aqueous reaction. 

This reaction was first reported by Fittig and Schrohe in 1875 and subsequently extended by Kutscheroff in 1881. It is an acid-catalyzed hydration of alkynes into ketones. In this reaction, dilute sulfuric acid and mercuric salt are used as catalysts, and mercuric chloride can form a complex with acetylene in aqueous solution. This reaction has been used to prepare ketones from higher alkynes, such as propyne, and vinylacetylene as well as in commercial production of acetaldehyde from acetylene. ... 

Scheme 3.9. Ketones from Add-Catalyzed and Mercuric-lon-Catalyzed Hydrations of Terminal Alkynes... 

The ketones resulting from the hydration of alkynes are useful chemical intermediates. For these reasons, attempts to develop nonmercury alkyne hydration were pursued. The system Nafion(Pd ) resin catalyst was the first reported to be active for the hydration of alkynes, including a-hydroxy alkynes, giving in high selectivity a-hydroxy-ketones [78]. At the same time, Cacchi and coworkers described the Pd(ll)-catalyzed hydration of enynes as key-step involved in a sequential process starting from vinyl triflates and affording y-hydroxy-a, p-enones [79]. 

The addition of acetylides to oxiranes yields 3-alkyn-l-ols (F. Sondheimer, 1950 M.A. Adams, 1979 R.M. Carlson, 1974, 1975 K. Mori, 1976). The acetylene dianion and two a -synthons can also be used. 1,4-Diols with a carbon triple bond in between are formed from two carbonyl compounds (V. Jager, 1977, see p. 52). The triple bond can be either converted to a CIS- or frans-configurated double bond (M.A. Adams, 1979) or be hydrated to give a ketone (see pp. 52, 57, 131). 

The chemistry of alkynes is dominated by electrophilic addition reactions, similar to those of alkenes. Alkynes react with HBr and HC1 to yield vinylic halides and with Br2 and Cl2 to yield 1,2-dihalides (vicinal dihalides). Alkynes can be hydrated by reaction with aqueous sulfuric acid in the presence of mercury(ll) catalyst. The reaction leads to an intermediate enol that immediately isomerizes to yield a ketone tautomer. Since the addition reaction occurs with Markovnikov regiochemistry, a methyl ketone is produced from a terminal alkyne. Alternatively, hydroboration/oxidation of a terminal alkyne yields an aldehyde. 

The degradation of alkynes has been the subject of sporadic interest during many years, and the pathway has been clearly delineated. It is quite distinct from those used for alkanes and alkenes, and is a reflection of the enhanced nucleophilic character of the alkyne C C bond. The initial step is hydration of the triple bond followed by ketonization of the initially formed enol. This reaction operates during the degradation of acetylene itself (de Bont and Peck 1980), acetylene carboxylic acids (Yamada and Jakoby 1959), and more complex alkynes (Figure 7.18) (Van den Tweel and de Bont 1985). It is also appropriate to note that the degradation of acetylene by anaerobic bacteria proceeds by the same pathway (Schink 1985b). 

Pt-catalyzed hydration of various aliphatic and aromatic alkynes under phase transfer conditions in (CH2C1)2/H20 in the presence of Aliquat 336 led to either a Markovnikov product, mixtures of two ketones, or ketones with the carbonyl group positioned away from the bulky side.72 In the absence of the phase transfer reagent, Aliquat 336, hardly any reaction took place. Recently, a hydrophobic, low-loading and alkylated polystyrene-supported sulfonic acid (LL-ALPS-SO3H) has also been developed for the hydration of terminal alkynes in pure water, leading to ketones as the product.73 Under microwave irradiation, the hydration of terminal arylalkynes was reported to proceed in superheated water (200°C) without any catalysts.74... 

Having pyrazinylacetylenes in hand, one could convert the alkynyne functionality into the corresponding ketone via hydration [33], Thus, the coupling of iodide 36 and acetylene 37 produced pyrazinylalkyne 38. Subsequent exposure of 38 to aqueous sodium sulfide and aqueous hydrochloric acid in methanol led to ketone 39. Such a maneuver provides additional opportunities for further manipulation of the alkynes derived from the Sonogashira coupling reactions. 

Predicting the outcome of electrophilic additions to alkynes from an extension of alkene reactivity usually works well, and can be applied to halogenations and hydrations. Hydration of an alkyne has a subtle twist, however the product is a ketone This can still be rationalized quite readily, though. 

Hydration of terminal alkynes to methyl ketones is a valuable synthetic transformation. The reverse conversion, viz. from a methyl ketone to an alkyne can also be a useful transformation. One of the most effective (but largely neglected) procedures for the conversion ArCOMe— ArC =CH has been shown to be the reaction of the acetophenone with two equivalents of POCI3 in DMF followed by treatment of the intermediate thus produced with a hot solution of sodium hydroxide in aqueous dioxane. The method can be used to prepare mono-, di- and triethynylarenes in 30-50% yield. 

D Ketones and Aldehydes from Hydration of Alkynes (Section 9-9F)... 

On the other hand, lithium enolates derived from substituted endocyclic ketones have largely been exploited in the synthesis of steroids since the regioselectivity of their deprotonation can be controlled and high levels of 1,2- and 1,3-stereoselection occur9,418. The control is steric rather than electronic, with the attack directed to the less substituted ji-face of the enolate for conformationally rigid cyclopentanones, whereas stereoelectronic control becomes significant for the more flexible cyclohexanones. Finally, an asymmetric variant of the formation of a-branched ketones by hydration of camphor-derived alkynes followed by sequential alkylation with reactive alkyl halides of the resulting ketones was recently reported (Scheme 87)419. 

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