Levulinate

In his cephalosporin synthesis methyl levulinate was condensed with cysteine in acidic medium to give a bicyclic thiazolidine. One may rationalize the regioselective formation of this bicycle with the assumption that in the acidic reaction mixture the tMoI group is the only nucleophile present, which can add to the ketone. Intramolecular amide formation from the methyl ester and acid-catalyzed dehydration would then lead to the thiazolidine and y-lactam rings. The stereochemistry at the carboxylic acid a-... 

Under acidic conditions, furfuryl alcohol polymerizes to black polymers, which eventually become crosslinked and insoluble in the reaction medium. The reaction can be very violent and extreme care must be taken when furfuryl alcohol is mixed with any strong Lewis acid or Brn nstad acid. Copolymer resins are formed with phenoHc compounds, formaldehyde and/or other aldehydes. In dilute aqueous acid, the predominant reaction is a ring opening hydrolysis to form levulinic acid [123-76-2] (52). In acidic alcohoHc media, levulinic esters are formed. The mechanism for this unusual reaction in which the hydroxymethyl group of furfuryl alcohol is converted to the terminal methyl group of levulinic acid has recendy been elucidated (53). 

In the acid hydrolysis process (79—81), wood is treated with concentrated or dilute acid solution to produce a lignin-rich residue and a Hquor containing sugars, organic acids, furfural, and other chemicals. The process is adaptable to all species and all forms of wood waste. The Hquor can be concentrated to a molasses for animal feed (82), used as a substrate for fermentation to ethanol or yeast (82), or dehydrated to furfural and levulinic acid (83—86). Attempts have been made to obtain marketable products from the lignin residue (87) rather than using it as a fuel, but currently only carbohydrate-derived products appear practical. 

Oxopentanoate (Levulinate) Ester ROCOCH2CH2COCH3, LevOR Formation... 

When levulinic acid (CH3CCH2CH2CO2H) was hydrogenated at high pressure over a nickel catalyst at 220°C, a single product, C5Hg02, was isolated in 94% yield. This compound lacks hydroxyl absorption in its IR spectrum and does not immediately liberate carbon dioxide on being shaken with sodium bicarbonate. What is a reasonable structure for the compound ... 

The levulinate is less prone to migrate than the benzoate and acetate." ... 

Formate, 276 Acetate, 276 Levulinate, 278 Pivaloate, 278 Benzoate, 279 9-Fluorenecarboxylate, 280 Xanthenecarboxylate, 280... 

Syntheses of heterocycles on the basis of levulinic acid 99UK80. 

Lavulin, n. levulin. -saure, /. levulinic acid. Lavulkan, n. a kind of synthetic rubber. T. N. Lavulose,/. levulose, n-fructose. 

Lactic acid and levulinic acid are two key intermediates prepared from carbohydrates [7]. Lipinsky [7] compared the properties of the lactide copolymers [130] obtained from lactic acid with those of polystyrene and polyvinyl chloride (see Scheme 4 and Table 5) and showed that the lactide polymer can effectively replace the synthetics if the cost of production of lactic acid is made viable. Poly(lactic acid) and poly(l-lactide) have been shown to be good candidates for biodegradeable biomaterials. Tsuji [131] and Kaspercejk [132] have recently reported studies concerning their microstructure and morphology. 

The carboxyl terminated ACPA, 4,4 -azobis-(4-cya-nopentanoic acid), turned out to be a suitable reagent in condensation reactions. This compound can be prepared by Strecker s synthesis from levulinic acid following the method of Haines and Waters [12]. Regarding the formation of polymeric azo initiators, Matsakuwa et al. [13] reported on the condensation of ACPA with various diols and diamines in the presence of a condensation agent, I-methyl-2-chlorpyridinium iodide, and a cata-... 

Scheme 11 Microwave-assisted Ugi reaction of levulinic acid 30...

Linking the ketone and carboxylic acid components together in an Ugi reaction facilitates the synthesis of pyrrolidinones amenable to library design. The three-component condensation of levulinic acid 30, an amine and isocyanide proceeds under microwave irradiation to give lactams 31 [65]. The optimum conditions were established by a design of experiments approach, varying the equivalents of amine, concentration, imine pre-formation time, microwave reaction time and reaction temperature, yielding lactams 31 at 100 °C in poor to excellent yield, after only 30 min compared to 48 h under ambient conditions (Scheme 11). 

The photo-Kolbe reaction is the decarboxylation of carboxylic acids at tow voltage under irradiation at semiconductor anodes (TiO ), that are partially doped with metals, e.g. platinum [343, 344]. On semiconductor powders the dominant product is a hydrocarbon by substitution of the carboxylate group for hydrogen (Eq. 41), whereas on an n-TiOj single crystal in the oxidation of acetic acid the formation of ethane besides methane could be observed [345, 346]. Dependent on the kind of semiconductor, the adsorbed metal, and the pH of the solution the extent of alkyl coupling versus reduction to the hydrocarbon can be controlled to some extent [346]. The intermediacy of alkyl radicals has been demonstrated by ESR-spectroscopy [347], that of the alkyl anion by deuterium incorporation [344]. With vicinal diacids the mono- or bisdecarboxylation can be controlled by the light flux [348]. Adipic acid yielded butane [349] with levulinic acid the products of decarboxylation, methyl ethyl-... 

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