Ketones, methyl with sodium dichromate

The oxidation of a methyl ketone to a carboxylic acid with one less carbon by oxidants other than hypohalites is exemplified by the oxidation of 2-acetylfluorene with sodium dichromate. In addition to the methyl keto group, the methylene group is also oxidized (equation 432) [626]. 

Methyl ethyl ketone. Use the apparatus of Fig. Ill, 61, 1 but with a 500 ml. round-bottomed flask. Place 40 g. (50 ml.) of see. butyl alcohol, 100 ml. of water and a few fragments of porous porcelain in the flask. Dissolve 100 g. of sodium dichromate dihydrate in 125 ml. of water in a beaker and add very slowly and with constant sturing 80 ml. of concentrated sulphuric acid allow to cool, and transfer the resulting solution to the dropping funnel. Heat the flask on a wire gauze or in an air bath until the alcohol mixture commences to boil. Remove the flame and run in the dichromate solution slowly and at such a rate that the temperature... 

At an early date it was already recognized that the ketone (IX) derived from an oxidation of the C-18 carbinol function of methyl reserpate could be of considerable utility for further transformation of the reserpine pentacyclic ring system, but early attempts at the preparation of the desired compound by conventional oxidation, e.g., by Oppenauer s method, AAchlorosuceinimide, sodium dichromate, or chromic oxide in pyridine, were unsuccessful with both methyl reserpate and methyl 18-epireserpate. The ketone was finally obtained by heating methyl reserpate p-bromobenzene sulfonate with dimethyl sulfoxide in the presence of triethylamine (162), a method successfully used for simpler compounds (163). Subsequently, it was found that this oxidation could also be realized with other benzene sulfonate esters of methyl reserpate and 18-epireserpate. That the stereochemistry of the molecule was unaffected was proved by sodium borohydride reduction of the ketone, which gave equal amounts of methyl reserpate and its 18-epimer. This and other simple reactions of the ketone are sketched in Chart III, and additional observations will be given. 

The sex pheromone structure, 10-methyl-2-tridecanone, was synthesized using the carboxyl group as the source of the methyl branch (lA) (Figure 6). Undecylenic acid was a-propylated and resolved via amides. The procedure followed allowed us to obtain the alcohols,(R)- and (S)-2-propyl-10-undecenol (>99.6% ee). The corresponding bromide was reduced with lithium triethylborohydride (15) then the double bond was converted to a methyl ketone by a) oxymercuration, b) reduction of the C-Hg bond with sodium borohy-dride, and c) oxidation with dichromate. The male southern corn rootworm responds only to the (R)-configuration no biological activity was noted for the (S)-enantiomer. Therefore, in this instance the racemic compound would be predicted to monitor this species adequately. 

The oxidation of manool has been re-examined with the aim of producing ambergris-type perfumes. Oxidation with potassium permanganate afforded the known s methyl ketone (6), the diether (7), and at 40 °C the lactone (8). Sodium dichromate gave the aldehyde (9) as a mixture of E- and Z-isomers. Further oxidation of the methyl ketone with hypobromite gave an a-hydroxy-acid (10) and an ether (11) which was also obtained from manoyl oxide. Oxidation of the ketone with per-acid gave an acetoxy-epoxide which on reduction with lithium aluminium hydride afforded a diol. This was converted into an odoriferous ether (12). The ready formation of 5- and 6-membered-ring ethers of this type is a characteristic feature of this area of diterpenoid chemistry. 

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