Nucleophile-vinyl cation reaction

This scheme represents an alkyne-bromine complex as an intermediate in all alkyne brominations. This is analogous to the case of alkenes. The complex may dissociate to a inyl cation when the cation is sufficiently stable, as is the case when there is an aryl substituent. It may collapse to a bridged bromonium ion or undergo reaction with a nucleophile. The latta is the dominant reaction for alkyl-substituted alkynes and leads to stereospecific anti addition. Reactions proceeding through vinyl cations are expected to be nonstereospecific. 

Evidence for the occurrence of vinyl cations as short-lived intermediates in solvolysis and other reactions has accumulated in the last few years (reviewed by Hanack, 1970, by Richey and Richey, 1970, and by Modena and Tonellato, 1971), but they have not been observed spectroscopically. It has been shown possible to intercept some vinyl cations—prepared in a system of extremely low nucleophilicity (EHSO3—SbEj 1 1-1 10) by protonation of propyne and 2-butyne— by carbon monoxide (Hogeveen and Roobeek, 1971b). The oxocarbo-nium ions formed in these cases are shown in the following scheme ... 

The exact behavior and mechanism of electrophilic additions to alkynes is clearly strongly dependent upon the reaction conditions. In a highly polar and strongly acidic but weakly nucleophilic solvent such as trifluoroacetic acid, addition via a vinyl cation intermediate is favored whereas in less polar, more nucleophilic solvents such as acetic acid, a different mechanism prevails. 

In all of the above cases involving decompositions of vinyl diazonium ions, the observed products are consistent with a vinyl cation formulation, but extensive mechanistic studies of these reactions have not been reported. It is difficult, for instance, to establish to what extent reaction proceeds through the diazonium ion via a backside nucleophilic attack and concerted loss of nitrogen rather than through the free vinyl cation. In the absence of kinetic data, it is also difficult to rule out competing or alternative mechanisms not involving vinyl cations. 

A unimolecular ionization was shown to be the mechanism of solvolysis by means of rate studies, solvent effects, salt effects, and structural effects (179,180). The products of reaction consist of benzo [bjthiophen derivatives 209 or nucleophilic substitution products 210, depending upon the solvent system employed. By means of a series of elegant studies, Modena and co-workers have shown that the intermediate ion 208 can have either the open vinyl cation structure 208a or the cyclic thiirenium ion 208b, depending... 

Nucleophilic vinylic substitution and vinyl cation intermediates in the reactions of vinyl iodonium salts. 37, 1... 

Vinyl cations of type 28 with a-aryl or a-alkyl substituents and two P-silyl groups and with an anion of very low nucleophilicity can be generated at room temperature in non-coordinating solvents from 30 by a Si-H to C-H hydride transfer reaction. For 29 (R = t-butyl), an X-ray structure determination has been reported (43, 52, 53). 

Under more basic conditions, a-elimination predominates and insertion of the carbene 40 to the solvent gives racemic 22. Non-basic and poorly nucleophilic conditions allow neighboring group participation to form the rearranged substitution product 23 with complete chirality transfer. The participation can be considered as an intramolecular nucleophilic substitution, and does occur only when it is preferable to the external reactions. Under slightly basic conditions with bases in HFIP, participation is allowed, and the weak base can react with the more electrophilic vinylic cation 21 (but not with the iodonium ion 19). A suitably controlled basicity can result in the formation of cycloalkyne 39, which is symmetrical and leads to racemization. These reactivities are illustrated in Scheme 6. 

In contrast to the thermal solvolysis, a rearranged enol ether 45 (and also the hydrolysis product, acetophenone) is formed in addition to the unrearranged product 44. The rearrangement is more apparent in less nucleophilic TFE. The results are best accounted for by heterolysis to give the open primary styryl cation 46 (Scheme 8). This cation gives products of substitution 44 and elimination 30 by reaction with the solvent. Alternatively, 46 can rearrange to the a-phenyl vinyl cation 47 via 1,2-hydride shift, which gives rise to 45 and 30. 

Alkylideneallyl cations can be described as resonance hybrids of 1-vinyl-substituted vinyl cations and allenylmethyl cations, and thus contain two reactive sites (the sp- and sp2-hybridized carbons) for nucleophilic addition (Scheme 1) (7,2). Hybridization affects the electronic and steric character of these reaction sites. The electronic property was deduced from the l3C NMR chemical shifts of alkylideneallyl cations measured under superacidic conditions (3) and also from the charge distribution calculated (4). The charge distributions are affected by substituents on the cation the sp2 carbon is more positive than the sp carbon when two methyl groups are introduced at the sp2 carbon. 

Because of their high reactivity, these complex salts react rapidly and regiospecifically, at low temperature, with a number of carbon and heteroatomic nucleophiles, including thiols, amines, and alcohols. Finally, exposure of the double bond takes place under particularly mild conditions so that isomerization of the (3,Y-unsaturated carbonyl system may be avoided. The present scope of reactions with these vinyl cation synthons is summarized in [able I. 

The exceptional nucleofugality of the phenyliodonio group has been determined in an alkenyl salt and it is about 106 times greater than that of triflate [30]. This remarkable property makes alkenyl iodonium salts excellent vinyl cation equivalents in nucleophilic substitutions. The chemistry of alkenyl iodonium salts is dominated by the transfer of their aliphatic moiety to a variety of nucleophiles other important reactions involve Michael-type addition and alkylidenecarbene generation, along with elimination to alkynes which is actually an undesirable side-reaction. 

In suitable vinylic halides, nucleophilic photosubstitution occurs intramolecular- 295-297,324,330-332 por jnstance irradiation of 113 in methanol only yields benzofuran 114, and no vinyl ether product or 1,2-aryl rearrangement products are formed (equation 84a)296. Apparently, the reaction with an internal nucleophile is faster than the 1,2-aryl shift and also faster than the reaction with an external nucleophile. With the less stabilized vinyl cations derived from the a-methyl- and a-H-analogues of 113-OMe, 1,2-aryl shifts do... 

Photolysis of 2-bromo-4,4-dimethyl-2-cyclohexenone only affords reduction, even in a nucleophilic medium343,344. Apparently, this substrate is structurally not suitable to form a vinyl cation. Formation of vinyl radical-derived products is also the main process for all vinylic halides, if their irradiation is performed in an apolar medium. Such photochemical reductive dehalogenation and especially dechlorination reactions have been extensively studied in the past, not in the least because of their importance as abiotic transformation of persistent polychlorinated environmental pollutants. Examples are the cyclodiene insecticides aldrin and dieldrin, which contain a vicinal dichloroethene chromophore. In recent... 

Prior to this report, the addition of bromine to alkynes in acetic acid was suggested to occur via an electrophilic process (although not explicitly involving vinyl cations as intermediates) by Robertson et al. (1950). The reaction rate was found to obey mixed second and third-order kinetics and to be enhanced by electron-supplying substituents. It was also noted that strong electron-withdrawing residues bonded to the triple bond may switch the reaction pattern towards a nucleophilic... 

The greater stability of the digonal vinyl cation 161 than of the bridged cation 162 would imply that, at least in the gas phase, race-mization is involved as stereochemical course of any reaction with nucleophiles since both lobes of the empty p-orbital of 161 are available for a nucleophilic attack. Efforts to rationalize (Bumelle, 1964) early reports of stereospecific trans addition to acetylene derivatives have recently been complemented by a theoretical calculation of the energy profile for addition of hydrogen fluoride to acetylene in the gas phase (Hopkinson et at., 1971). The results of these calculations suggest that the bridged cation is possibly a transition state and not an intermediate. 

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