Metalations with organolithium

Transmetallation represents the most widely applicable method for the preparation of ZrCp2 derivatives. In view of the relatively low electronegativity (EN hereafter) of Zr (EN 1.2—1.4), however, transmetallation as shown in Scheme 1.9 may be expected to be favorable only with organometals containing highly electropositive metals, such as Li (EN 1.0) and Mg (EN 1.20). Indeed, facile and complete dialkylation of Cp2ZrCl2 may be readily observed with these metals. With organolithiums, however, the reaction... 

Deprotonation of very weakly acidic C—H acids is accomplished by metallation with organolithium and organosodium compounds. 

Metalations with organolithium compounds, 8, 6 26, 1 27, 1 Methylenation of carbonyl groups, 43, 1 Methylenecyclopropane, in cycloaddition reactions, 61, 1... 

Another very important ring substitution reaction of ferrocene is its ability to undergo metalation with organolithium and organosodium compounds. Metalation with n-butyllithium in ethyl ether, first reported by Nesmeyanov and coworkers (63) and independently by Benkeser, Goggin, and Schroll (3),"leads to rather low yields of ferrocenyllithium (XXXI, M = Li) and l,l -ferrocenylenedi-lithium (XXXII, M = Li). It was subsequently shown by Mayo, Shaw, and... 

As further illustrated in Scheme 2, the 1-methyl- and 1,3,3-trimethylcyclopropene are rapidly metallated with organolithium reagents in ether to afford stable solutions of the 1-lithiocyclopropenes (18) In comparison, solutions of the metallocyclopropenes (16) are significantly less stable and even at — 40°C are observed to degrade slowly to a mixture of dimeric and trimeric products apparently formed by nucleophilic addition of 16 to the highly reactive cyclopropene n system L Alkylation of 18 (R=H or Me) with methyl iodide produced 1,2-dimethyl- and 1,2,3,3-tetramethylcyclopropene . The trimethyl derivative 18 (R = Me) has also been carbonated and acylated to afford the corresponding 2,3,3-trimethylcyclopropene carboxylic acid, methyl ketone and carboxaldehyde. 

In general, polymeric materials that contain either side groups or main-chain allylic or acidic hydrogens can be metallated with organolithium compounds in the presence of chelating diamines. They can also be grafted with ionically polymerizable monomers to produce comblike materials (Halasa et al., 1976). 

The terminal methyl group of unsymmetrical ketone dimethylhydrazone is reactive, and is easily metalated with organolithium compounds. Subsequently, the substituted products are produced by reaction with halides as shown in eq. (3.25). These reactions are applied for the synthesis of dihydrojasmone [73]. 

Metalation of Thiophenes with Organolithium Compounds (Nucleophilic Substitution on Hydrogen)... 

The (3-elimination of epoxides to allylic alcohols on treatment with strong base is a well studied reaction [la]. Metalated epoxides can also rearrange to allylic alcohols via (3-C-H insertion, but this is not a synthetically useful process since it is usually accompanied by competing a-C-H insertion, resulting in ketone enolates. In contrast, aziridine 277 gave allylic amine 279 on treatment with s-BuLi/(-)-spar-teine (Scheme 5.71) [97]. By analogy with what is known about reactions of epoxides with organolithiums, this presumably proceeds via the a-metalated aziridine 278 [101]. 

Next to the formation of Grignard reagents, the most important application of this reaction is the conversion of alkyl and aryl halides to organolithium compounds, but it has also been carried out with many other metals, (e.g., Na, Be, Zn, Hg, As, Sb, and Sn). With sodium, the Wurtz reaction (10-93) is an important side reaction. In some cases, where the reaction between a halide and a metal is too slow, an alloy of the metal with potassium or sodium can be used instead. The most important example is the preparation of tetraethyl lead from ethyl bromide and a Pb—Na alloy. 

Germyl, Stannyl, and Plumbyl Anions The preparative methods for the synthesis of the germyl, stannyl, and plumbyl anions are essentially the same as those mentioned above for the silyl anions. The most widely used methods are (1) reduction of halides R3EX (R = alkyl, aryl E = Ge, Sn, Pb X = Cl, Br) with alkali metals and (2) reductive cleavage of the E-E bond of R3E-ER3 (R = alkyl, aryl E = Ge, Sn, Pb) with alkali metals or organolithium reagents. Due to the favorable polarization of the (E = Ge, Sn, Pb) bond, the direct metalation... 

Sulfur diimides react quantitatively with organolithium reagents at the sulfur centre to produce lithium sulfinimidinates of the type Li[RS(NR )2] A. The lithium derivatives may be hydrolysed by water to R NS(R)NHR which, upon treatment with MH (M=Na, K) or the metal (M=Rb, Cs) in THF, produces the heavier alkali-metal derivatives.132 The structures of these complexes are influenced by (a) the size and electronic properties of the R group, (b) the size of the alkali metal cation, and (c) solvation of the alkali-metal cation. 

Similar 1,2-addition reactions were also observed in the reaction of 2,3-allenal with organolithiums, Grignard reagents or the reduction of 1,2-allenyl ketones with metal hydrides [190],... 

In order to determine the strnctnres of the intermediate organolithium compounds, 1-phenylpropyne was metalated with 4 equivalents of w-butyllithium in refluxing cyclohexane . One hour later, no absorption due to lithiated phenylpropynes was detected. The IR spectrum showed only a strong peak at 1775 cm due to a trilithioallene, which gradually became much stronger. Apparently, the introduction of the first Li atom is much slower than subsequent lithiations, so no mono- and dilithiated species were observed in the IR spectrum. 

Transmetallation of allyltributyltin with organolithium species has been used for the generation of allyllithium solutions free of the coupling byproducts which often result from reduction of allylic halides with lithium metal. These solutions may then be used directly for the preparation of Gilman reagents and other reactive modifications of the parent allyllithium. 

---