Amides lithium

Anhydrous liquid ammonia (note 2) (900 ml) was drawn from a cylinder and introduced into the flask. Iron(III) nitrate (lOO mg) was added and, as soon as a uniformly brown solution had formed (after stirring for a few seconds), about 0.7 g of lithium (from the starting amount of 7 g) was cut into two or three pieces and immediately introduced into the flask. After 10-15 min the blue colour had disappeared completely and a white suspension of lithium amide had formed. The remainder of the 7 g (1 mol) of lithium was then cut up and introduced. In most cases the conversion was finished v/ithin about 30 min (note 3). 

In contrast to the reaction with lithium amide, the sodium amide suspension immediately settles out after stopping the stirring and the supernatant ammonia has a grey or black colour, due to colloidal iron. In some cases it took a long time before all of the sodium had been converted (note 4). A further 0.1 g of iron(III) nitrate was then added to accelerate the reaction and some liquid ammonia was introduced to compensate for the losses due to evaporation. 

Hate 1. To a suspension of 0.40 mol of lithium amide in 400 ml of liquid NH3 (see Chapter II, Exp. 11) was added 0.30 mol of HCECCH20-tert.-CitHg Subsequently 0.46 mol of CjHsBr was introduced in 30 min. After an additional 1 h the NH3 was removed by placing the flask in a water-bath at 40°C. Addition of water, extraction with diethyl ether and distillation gave C2H C=CCH20-tert.-C,H in more than 85% yield. 

Apparatus 4-1 flask (see Fig. 2) for the reaction with lithium amide 3-1 silvered Dewar flask, provided with a rubber stopper and a gas outlet for the hydroxyalkylation (no stirring was applied). 

To a vigorously stirred suspension of 4 mol of lithium amide (see II, Exp. II) in 2.5 1 of liquid ammonia were added in 25 min 2 mol of propargyl alcohol (commercially available, purified before use by distillation at 100-120 mm). The suspension became very thin. Subsequently, the dropping funnel was combined with a gas inlet tube reaching about 1 cm beneath the surface of the ammonia. The vent on the splashing tube was removed. Methyl iodide (2 mol) was added to the vigorous-... 

To a vigorously stirred suspension of 2 mol of lithium amide in 2 1 of liquid atimonia (see II, Exp. 11) was added in 15 min 1 mol of propargyl alcohol (commercial product, distilled in a partial vacuum before use). Subsequently, 1 mol of butyl bromide was added dropwise in 75 min. After an additional 1.5 h, stirring was stopped and the ammonia was allovied to evaporate. To the solid residue were added 500 ml of ice-water. After the solid mass had dissolved, six extractions with diethyl ether were performed. The (unwashed) combined extracts were dried over magnesium sulfate and then concentrated in a water-pump vacuum. Distillation of the residue through a 40-cm Vigreux column afforded 2-heptyn-l-ol, b.p. 

The formation of the above anions ("enolate type) depend on equilibria between the carbon compounds, the base, and the solvent. To ensure a substantial concentration of the anionic synthons in solution the pA" of both the conjugated acid of the base and of the solvent must be higher than the pAT -value of the carbon compound. Alkali hydroxides in water (p/T, 16), alkoxides in the corresponding alcohols (pAT, 20), sodium amide in liquid ammonia (pATj 35), dimsyl sodium in dimethyl sulfoxide (pAT, = 35), sodium hydride, lithium amides, or lithium alkyls in ether or hydrocarbon solvents (pAT, > 40) are common combinations used in synthesis. Sometimes the bases (e.g. methoxides, amides, lithium alkyls) react as nucleophiles, in other words they do not abstract a proton, but their anion undergoes addition and substitution reactions with the carbon compound. If such is the case, sterically hindered bases are employed. A few examples are given below (H.O. House, 1972 I. Kuwajima, 1976). 

In each of the following reactions an amine or a lithium amide derivative reacts with an aryl halide Give the structure of the expected product and specify the mechanism by which it is formed... 

Lithium Amide. Lithium amide [7782-89-0], LiNH2, is produced from the reaction of anhydrous ammonia and lithium hydride. The compound can also be prepared by the removal of ammonia from solutions of lithium metal in the presence of catalysts (54). Lithium amide starts to decompose at 320°C and melts at 375°C. Decomposition of the amide above 400°C results first in lithium imide, Li2NH, and eventually in lithium nitride, Li N. Lithium amide is used in the production of antioxidants (qv) and antihistamines (see HiSTAMlNE AND HISTAMINE ANTAGONISTS). 

Lithium acetyhde also can be prepared directly in hquid ammonia from lithium metal or lithium amide and acetylene (134). In this form, the compound has been used in the preparation of -carotene and vitamin A (135), ethchlorvynol (136), and (7j--3-hexen-l-ol (leaf alcohol) (137). More recent synthetic processes involve preparing the lithium acetyhde in situ. Thus lithium diisopropylamide, prepared from //-butyUithium and the amine in THF at 0°C, is added to an acetylene-saturated solution of a ketosteroid to directly produce an ethynylated steroid (138). 

Lithium amides of primary / fZ-alkylamines yield N-(/ f2 -alkyl)-0-(/ f2 -butyl)hydroxylamines, whereas lithium amides of primary alkylamines yield A/-alkylbenzamides and LiOO—due to nucleophilic attack on the carbonyl group (245). 

Heating metallic lithium in a stream of gaseous ammonia gives lithium amide [7782-89-0] LiNH2, which may also be prepared from Hquid ammonia and lithium in the presence of platinum black. Amides of the alkaH metals can be prepared by double-decomposition reactions in Hquid ammonia. For example... 

Tantalum Nitrides. Tantalum nitride [12033-62-4] TaN, is produced by direct synthesis of the elements at 1100°C. Very pure TaN has been produced by spontaneous reaction of lithium amide, L1NH2, and TaCl ( )- The compound is often added to cermets in 3—18 wt %. Ta N [12033-94-2] is used as a red pigment in plastics and paints (78). 

In some cases, especially in the presence of strongly electron attracting substituents, isomerization to acid amides has been observed, probably preceded by deprotonation at ring carbon. Even (56), known for its stability towards common alkali, undergoes this rearrangement when a lithium amide is used as the base (80JOC1489). 

An isolated acetoxyl function would be expected to be converted into the alkoxide of the corresponding steroidal alcohol in the course of a metal-ammonia reduction. Curiously, this conversion is not complete, even in the presence of excess metal. When a completely deacetylated product is desired, the crude reduction product is commonly hydrolyzed with alkali. This incomplete reduction of an acetoxyl function does not appear to interfere with a desired reduction elsewhere in a molecule, but the amount of metal to be consumed by the ester must be known in order to calculate the quantity of reducing agent to be used. In several cases, an isolated acetoxyl group appears to consume approximately 2 g-atoms of lithium, even though a portion of the acetate remains unreduced. Presumably, the unchanged acetate escapes reduction because of precipitation of the steroid from solution or because of conversion of the acetate function to its lithium enolate by lithium amide. 

Alkyltrifluorosilanes and disubstituted difluorosilanes are themselves quite reactive with nucleophiles such as lithium amide bases [102, 103 104], alkyl-lithium reagents [1051, Gngnard reagents [105], or alkoxides [105] (equations 82 and 83)... 

Aromatic enamines were prepared by dehydroha logenation of /3-bromo-amines with strong base. While trans enamines were thus formed, one obtained mostly cis enamines from rearrangement of the corresponding allylic amines under similar reaction conditions (646). Vicinal endiamines were obtained from S-dichloroamines and lithium amides (647). 

Amino derivatives are obtained by standard reactions with secondary amines, lithium amides or... 

The chiral naphthyloxazoline substrates can also be employed in asymmetric carbon-heteroatom bond-forming reactions with lithium amides, which provide unusual... 

A mixture containing 186 g (0.20 mol) of 2-aminopyridine, 0.55 g of lithium amide and 75 cc of anhydrous toluene was refluxed for 1.5 hours. Styrene oxide (12.0 g = 0.10 mol) was then added to the reaction mixture with stirring over a period of ten minutes. The reaction mixture was stirred and refluxed for an additional 3.5 hours. A crystalline precipitate was formed during the reaction which was removed by filtration, MP 170°C to 171°C, 1.5 g. The filtrate was concentrated to dryness and a dark residue remained which was crystallized from anhydrous ether yield 6.0 g. Upon recrystallization of the crude solid from 30 cc of isopropyl alcohol, 2.0 g of a light yellow solid was isolated MP 170°C to 171°C. 

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