Nitriles from alkyl bromides

Amines as Catalysts. Some reports have appeared on the use of amines as catalysts in PTC nucleophilic substitution methods. For example, the preparation of alkyl thiocyanates or nitriles from alkyl bromides in two-phase systems may be assisted by a variety of primary, secondary, or tertiary amines as alternatives to quaternary ions. Efficient catalysis seems to require a sterically unhindered amino group with relatively high basicity (J.e. t-alkyl and aromatic amines are not fully efficient), and a total number of carbon atoms in the amine of greater than six to achieve good phase distribution of the catalysts. A similar study on the alkylation of benzyl methyl ketone reached the same conclusions, and from various observations e.g. that the reaction displayed an induction period at low catalyst concentration) it was postulated that initial alkylation of the amine by the alkylating agent (usually a halide) was essential to provide quaternary ions as the actual catalyst,... 

From 94, several compounds were generated such as the 3-thioalkyl compounds 96 (40-67%) by reaction with alkyl bromides. Intermediate 94 was also treated with HCl, iodine, 1,3-dibromopropane or with ethyl chlorocar-bonate affording the mercaptane 97 (68%), the disulfide 98 (45%, n = 0), compound 99 (37%, = 3) and the thiocarbonate 100 (67%), respectively. By a partial hydrolysis of the nitrile group with H2SO4 at reflux, carboxamides lOla-b (92%) were prepared from 96. The same reagents 96 can be transformed into methyl esters 102 (Scheme 26). 

It has also been shown that Ni complexes can successfully carry out intramolecular or intermolecular electroreductive addition of alkyl radicals to activated olefins. Thus bicyelic ketones 78 and 80 are conveniently prepared in good yields from 2-bromoalkyl-2-cyclohexenone 77 and 3-bromoalkyl-2-cyclohexenone 79, respectively [25]. Alkyl bromides also react with a,) -unsaturated esters and nitriles to give 1,4-addition products in moderate yields [26]. 

Reduction of the nitro group and halides. Amines are obtained in good yields. The reduction can also be performed by a reagent generated from borohydride resin. The latter reagent converts alkyl bromides and iodides to the hydrocarbons, whereas chlorides, tosylates, esters, and nitriles are not affected. 

Alkyl nitriles are also prepared from alkyl halides with sodium cyanide impregnated on alumina and with cyanide ion in the presence of polystyrene-bound n-propyltributylphosphonium bromide, and by hydrocyanation of alkenes and alkynes. ... 

Li and coworkers reported the conjugate addition of alkyl groups to enamides mediated by zinc in aq. NH4CI to generate a -amino acid derivatives (Eq. 4.73). No reaction was observed in the absence of water. Both secondary and tertiary alkyl groups such as linear (2-butyl, 2-propyl, 2-pentyl), cyclic (cyclohexyl, cyclopentyl, cycloheptyl), and bulky ones (tert-butyl) were all transferred to the substrate successfully. Even simple primary iodides and methyl iodide provided the desired products in good yields. Miyabe et al. as well as Jang and Cho reported the addition of alkyl radicals from alkyl iodide to a,p unsaturated ketones, esters, and nitriles mediated by indium in aqueous media. Indium-mediated Michael addition of allyl bromide to l,l-dicyano-2-arylethenes also proceeded well in aqueous medium. ... 

Tertiary amines are also known to effect the phase transfer addition of cyanide ion to primary, allylic, and benzylic halides [9]. The reported effect of amine structure on catalytic efficiency closely parallels that reported by Hennis for ester formation in a two-phase system (see Sect. 1.7). Both the nitrogen of the amine and the carbon bearing halide of the alkyl bromide must be sterically accessible for the reaction to succeed. Thus, -hexylamine is effective in concert with -butyl bromide but the combinations of either 5-butyl bromide and -hexylamine or -butyl bromide and cyclohexylamine are not. Tertiary amines are generally more effective than secondary or primary amines. In addition, the yields of primary nitriles decrease dramatically with the size of the primary alkyl bromide from quantitative with n-butyl to only 6% with -decyl bromide when -hexylamine is used as phase transfer catalyst. On the other hand, tributylamine was equally useful as a catalyst for the quantitative conversion of either 1-bromohexane or 1-bromodecane to the corresponding nitriles [9]. In general, these observations accord with those of Hennis and coworkers indicating that this reaction is an example of in situ formation of and catalysis by quaternary ammonium salts [10]. 

Replacement of one of the phenyl groups by an alkyl group of similar bulk, on the other hand, alters the biologic activity in this series. Alkylation of phenylacetonitrile with isopropyl bromide affords the substituted nitrile, 136. Treatment of the anion prepared from 136 with strong base with 2-dimethylamino-l-chloropropane gives isoaminile (137). It is of note that alkylation of this halide, isomeric with that used in the early methadone synthesis, is apparently unaccompanied by isomer formation. Isoaminile is an agent with antitussive activity. 

The second cycloaddition substrate took to form of 91 (Scheme 1.9b), incorporating a vinyl sulfone dipolarophile. Beginning with cyano ketone 84, which was readily prepared from 1,5-dicyanopentane via a previously reported three-step sequence [45], condensation with thiophenol produced vinyl sulfide 85 in 84 % yield. Vinyl sulfide 85 underwent bromination in acetonitrile to afford bromo-vinyl sulfide 86 (86 %), which was then treated with isopropylmagnesium chloride [46] to effect metal-halogen exchange affording an intermediate vinyl magnesium bromide species. Subsequent alkylation with Mel in the presence of catalytic CuCN provided the alkylated vinyl sulfide 87 in 93 % yield. The nitrile within vinyl... 

The third synthetic route reported by Husson and co-workers 140) is as follows Amino nitrile 472 obtained from the ketal (471) was converted to the 2,6-dialkylpiperidine (473) by catalytic hydrogenation followed by alkylation with lithium diisopropylamide and pentyl bromide. Refluxing a solution of 473 in methanol containing hydrochloric acid led to the formation of 9-benzyladaline (475) in 90% yield. Debenzylation of 475 gave d/-adaline (107) in nearly quantitative yield (Scheme 59) 140). 

The short Sanofi route to irbesartan (3) is outlined in Scheme 9.6. Dihydroimidazolone 27, which is prepared from the reaction of 1-amino-cyclopentanecarboxylic acid ester (25) with ethyl pentanimidate (26) in the presence of acetic acid in refluxing xylene, is alkylated with biphenylbenzyl bromide 18 in the presence of sodium hydride in DMF to give 28. Finally, the synthesis of irbesartan (3) is completed by the tetrazole formation from reaction of the nitrile group of 28 with tributyltin azide in refluxing xylene. [See Bernhart et al. (1993a, b).]... 

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