Kolbe electrolysis anode material

Electrochemical methods are very useful in structural studies but are barely applicable for preparative aims. The cause is the limited stability of cation radicals. It is difficult to do low-temperature preparative electrolysis, and the main problem is to dispose of the large amount of heat generated during the electrode work. That is, not much current can be passed through an ordinary-sized electrode without generating too much heat. When potential and temperature control are necessary, only small quantities of a material can be obtained in a reasonable period of time. When potential and temperature control are not necessary, as in Kolbe electrolysis, anodic oxidation is indeed useful as a preparative method. 

Non-Kolbe electrolysis of alicyclic p-hydroxy carboxylic acids offers interesting applications for the one-carbon ring extension of cyclic ketones (Eq. 35) [242c]. The starting compounds are easily available by Reformatsky reaction with cyclic ketones. Some examples are summarized in Table 13. Dimethylformamide as solvent and graphite as anode material appear to be optimal for this reaction. 

The electrode material can also influence the product distribution, as shown in the Kolbe electrolysis of carboxylates. With platinum anodes, the Kolbe dimerization of the intermediate radicals predominates strongly (Eq. 22.5). At carbon anodes, however, further oxidation to the carbenium ion (non-Kolbe reaction or Hofer-Moest reaction) becomes the main pathway (Eq. 22.25). 

By anodic decarboxylation carboxylic acids can be converted simply and in large variety into radicals. The combination of these radicals to form symmetrical dimers or unsymmetrical coupling products is termed Kolbe electrolysis (Scheme 1, path a). The radicals can also be added to double bonds to afford additive monomers or dimers, and in an intramolecular version can lead to five-membered heterocycles and carbocycles (Scheme 1, path b). The intermediate radical can be further oxidized to a carbenium ion (Scheme 1, path c). This oxidation is favored by electron-donating substituents at the a-carbon of the carboxylic acid, a basic electrolyte, graphite as anode material and salt additives, e.g. sodium perchlorate. The carbocations lead to products that are formed by solvolysis, elimination, fragmentation or rearrangement. This pathway of anodic decarboxylation is frequently called nonKolbe electrolysis. 

The electrolysis products of different carboxylates have been compared with the ionization potentials of the intermediate radicals. From this it appeared that alkyl radicals with gas-phase ionization potentials smaller than 8 eV mainly lead to carbenium ions. Accordingly, a-substituents such as carboxy, cyano or hydrogen support the radical pathway, whilst alkyl, cycloalkyl, chloro, bromo, amino, alkoxy, hydroxy, acyloxy or aryl more or less favor the route to carbenium ions. Besides electronic effects, the oxidation seems also to be influenced by steric factors. Bulky substituents diminish the extent of coupling. The main experimental factors that affect the yield in the Kolbe electrolysis are the current density, the pH of the electrolyte, ionic additives, the solvent and the anode material. 

The products observed in conventional monophasic Kolbe electrolysis reveal that the electrode material exerts a strong control, with products predominantly formed from carbocation intermediates detected at carbon anodes [48, 49] but one-electron products formed at platinum electrodes [36, 40]. Surprisingly, under biphasic conditions, as seen in Table 3, the electrode material did not affect the type or ratio of products formed, and the current efficiencies and product yields observed are only slightly lower using... 

Electrode modification can be carried out by methods that vary greatly. A reaction can be affected simply by addition to the electrolysis solution of a substance that is readily adsorbed onto the electrode surface. Thus, additimi of a thiocyanate salt to the medium diverts the anodic oxidatimi of carboxylates frran decarboxylative dimerization (Kolbe reaction) to peracid formation [1]. Often, a polymer solutimi containing an electrocatalyst is placed on a surface, and the solvent evaporated or a monomer is electrochemicaUy polymerized in situ from solution mito the surface. Electrocatalysts deposited in this manner include organometallic electrocatalyst complexes such as vitamin B12 [2], oxidizable heterocycles such as pyrrole or thiophene, or metal ions [3]. Successive layers of complementary materials may be laid down on an electrode to achieve the desired immobilization effect. Thus, a polymer (PDAA polydimethyldiallyl ammonium chloride) bearing... 

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