Nitro-substituted olefins studies

In several recent studies, nitro-substituted olefins have been shown to exhibit high electrophilic reactivities in superacid-promoted reactions.29 NMR studies have been used to identify some of the superelectrophilic intermediates in these reactions. For example, it was found that nitroethy-lene reacts with benzene in the presence of 10 equivalents of CF3SO3H to give deoxybenzoin oxime in 96% yield (eq 29). Since the reaction does not occur with only one equivalent of TfOH, it was proposed that the N,N-dihydroxy-iminium-methylium dication (51) is generated. In spectroscopic studies, l-nitro-2-methyl-l-propene (52) was dissolved in CF3SO3H, and at —5°C the stable dication (53) could be directly observed by and 13 C NMR spectroscopy (eq 30). 

Epoxidation of substituted spiro[cyclopentane-l,9 -fluorene]-2-enes 68 with a peroxidic reagent was studied [98], The spiro olefins react with m-chloroperbenzoic acid (mCPBA) in chloroform at 3 °C to give a mixture of the epoxides. In all cases (2-nitro (68b), 4-nitro (68c), 2-fluoro (68d) and 2-methoxyl (68e) groups), the iyn-epoxides, i.e., the syn addition of the peroxidic reagent with respect to the substituent, is favored. For example, for 6 nsyn anti = 63 31 for 68c syn anti = 65 35. Thus, a similar bias is observed in both the reduction of the carbonyl derivatives of 30 and the epoxidation of the derivatives of 68. 

As a preparative method the direct decarboxylation of olefinic acids is almost limited to the formation of styrenes and stilbenes from substituted cinnamic acids. Thermal decomposition of cinnamic acid gives styrene (41%). The yield is nearly quantitative if the reaction is carried out in quinoline at 220° in the presence of a copper catalyst. The yields of substituted styrenes where the aryl radical contains halo, methoxyl, aldehyde, cyano, and nitro groups are in the range of 30-76%. cis-Stilbene and cis-p-nitrostilbene are prepared in this way from the corresponding a-phenylcinnamic acids (65%). One aliphatic compound worthy of mention is 2-ethoxypropene, prepared by heating -ethoxycro-tonic acid at 165° (91% yield). The mechanism of acid-catalyzed decarboxylations of this type has been studied. Isomerization of the double bond from the a,/5- to the /5, y-position before decarboxylation very likely occurs in many instances. ... 

Rearrangement and elimination reactions on nitro-olefins and phei lseleno sugars have been performed to study the effects of substituted (7-atoms on the rates and acidities of various hydrogen atoms (Scheme 2). (See Vol. 25, p. 153, ref 11 for related work). Thus, as shown in the scheme, the double bond migration from C2 C1 in the nitro-olefin was found to be faster when X = O than when X = CH2. The audiors concluded from their experiments that the orimtation of the non-... 

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