O-alkylations

In conventional methods, PTC has provided interesting procedures for O-alkylation, and coupling PTC conditions with microwave activation has proved to be quite fruitful for such reactions. 

Alkyl acetates Potassium acetate can be readily alkylated in a domestic microwave oven by use of equivalent amounts of salt and alkylating agent in the presence of Aliquat 336 (10 mol%). Some important results, exemplified in Eq. (1), are given in Table 6.1 [10, 11]. 

Yields are always almost quantitative within 1-2 min, irrespective of chain length and the nature of the halide leaving groups. This procedure was scaled up from 50 mmol to the 2 mol scale (i.e. from 15.6 to 622.4 g total starting materials) in a larger batch reactor (Synthewave 1000 from Prolabo) [12]. Yields were equivalent to those obtained under similar conditions (5 min, 160 °C) in laboratory-scale experiment (Synthewave 402) vith nearly equivalent set of conditions of reaction time, temperature, and emitted electric power (Table 6.2). 

Xu et al. have obtained similar results with n-butyl bromide using TBAB (10 mol%) and alumina (4 1 wjw) as the catalyst [13]. Benzyl acetate was also conveniently prepared from sodium acetate and benzyl halide by use of MW irradiation and PTC in synergy [14]. 

Reactor Amounts of material [g (mol)] Total amount (g) Yield (%) 

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Another variation of the Madelung synthesis involves use of an O-alkyl or O-silyl imidate as the C2 electrophile. The mechanistic advantage of this modification stems from avoiding competing N-deprotonation, which presumably reduces the electrophilicity of the amide group under the classical conditions. Examples of this approach to date appear to have been limited to reactants with a EW substituent at the o-alkyl group[15,16]. 

If the oximino intermediates are O-alkylated and then reduced with BHj-N(CH3)3, N-alkoxy tryptophans can be obtained[6]. 

Fig. 25. Cross-linking reactions in a three-component resist system. Both O-alkylation and C-alkylation are shown.

When usiag HF TaF ia a flow system for alkylation of excess ethane with ethylene (ia a 9 1 molar ratio), only / -butane was obtained isobutane was not detectable even by gas chromatography (72). Only direct O -alkylation can account for these results. If the ethyl cation alkylated ethylene, the reaction would proceed through butyl cations, inevitably lea ding also to the formation of isobutane (through /-butyl cation). 

Changing the stmcture of R affects the activity of monoperoxycarbonates as previously discussed for peroxyesters. The other cogenerated radical is an alkoxycarbonyloxy radical. The nature of the R group has practically no effect on the reactivity of monoperoxycarbonates having the same 00-tert-55ky group. The 10-h half-life temperature remains at 100°C for almost ah. 00-tert-huty O-alkyl monoperoxycarbonates. 

PhenylPhosphorodithioate Esters, These differ from the widely used 0,0-dialkyl esters, by having mixed O-alkyl, Talkyl groups. 

Acyl peroxides of structure (20) are known as diacyl peroxides. In this structure and are the same or different and can be alkyl, aryl, heterocychc, imino, amino, or fiuoro. Acyl peroxides of stmctures (21), (22), (23), and (24) are known as dialkyl peroxydicarbonates, 00-acyl O-alkyl monoperoxycarbonates, acyl organosulfonyl peroxides, and di(organosulfonyl) peroxides, respectively. and R2 ia these stmctures are the same or different and generally are alkyl and aryl (4—6,44,166,187,188). Many diacyl peroxides (20) and dialkyl peroxydicarbonates (21) ate produced commercially and used ia large volumes. 

Thermal decomposition of 00-acyl O-alkyl monoperoxycarbonates (22, R, = alkyl or aryl) yield first-order decomposition rates between those... 

Acyl O-alkyl monopeioxycaibonates (22) aie obtained from the reaction of alkyl chloroformates with peroxycarboxyhc acids in the presence of a base (44,212) ... 

Fig. 2. Dihydrochalcone glycoside (49), where R = H, OH, or O—alkyl and R = glucosyl, mtinosyl, neohesperidosyl, or xylosyl.

Alkyl dimethyl c o c o alkyl dime thyl arnine s Tertiary amines [61788-93-0] -22... 

The a-hydioxypyiioles, which exist piimadly in the tautomeric pyiiolin-2-one form, can be synthesized either by oxidation of pyrroles that ate unsubstituted in the a-position or by ting synthesis. P-Hydtoxypyttoles also exist primarily in the keto form but do not display the ordinary reactions of ketones because of the contributions of the polar form (25). They can be teaddy O-alkylated and -acylated (41). 

Under suitable conditions, O-alkylation rather than N-alkylation takes place, eg, to form 2-methoxy-l-pyrroline [5264-35-7] (40) (74—76). 

Sulfonic acids are prone to reduction with iodine [7553-56-2] in the presence of triphenylphosphine [603-35-0] to produce the corresponding iodides. This type of reduction is also facile with alkyl sulfonates (16). Aromatic sulfonic acids may also be reduced electrochemicaHy to give the parent arene. However, sulfonic acids, when reduced with iodine and phosphoms [7723-14-0] produce thiols (qv). Amination of sulfonates has also been reported, in which the carbon—sulfur bond is cleaved (17). Ortho-Hthiation of sulfonic acid lithium salts has proven to be a useful technique for organic syntheses, but has Httie commercial importance. Optically active sulfonates have been used in asymmetric syntheses to selectively O-alkylate alcohols and phenols, typically on a laboratory scale. Aromatic sulfonates are cleaved, ie, desulfonated, by uv radiation to give the parent aromatic compound and a coupling product of the aromatic compound, as shown, where Ar represents an aryl group (18). 

Other approaches to inhibiting intramolecular cycli2ations of erythromycin have also proven successhil. Erom a series of O-alkyl derivatives of erythromycin, clarithromycin (6-0-methylerythromycin) (37) was selected for clinical development (146,147). Another approach replaced the C-8 proton of erythromycin with duorine, which was accompHshed by both chemical and bioconversion methods to yield durithromycin (38) (148). 

Caprolactam is an amide and, therefore, undergoes the reactions of this class of compounds. It can be hydrolyzed, Ai-alkylated, O-alkylated, nitrosated, halogenated, and subjected to many other reactions (3). Caprolactam is readily converted to high molecular weight, linear nylon-6 polymers. Through a complex series of reactions, caprolactam can be converted to the biologically and nutritionally essential amino acid L-lysine (10) (see Amino acids). 

Eig. 1. The quasispeciftc effect ia the homologous series of o-alkyl-/)-chloropheaol derivatives agaiast A = Salmonella typhosa-, B = Staphyloccus aureus-, C = Mycobacterium tuberculosis-, D = Candidaalbicans. Pheaol coefficieat is the activity of the chemical tested compared to that of pheaol. 

O- Alkylation is comparable to A/-alkylation, but since the sodium salts are water-soluble it is most convenient to treat the phenol or naphthol in aqueous caustic solution with dimethyl sulfate or diethyl sulfate. These are comparatively expensive reagents, and therefore, alkoxy groups are introduced at a prior stage by a nucleophilic displacement reaction whenever possible. 

Manufacture of alkylsulfones, important intermediates for metal-complex dyes and for reactive dyes, also depends on O-alkylation. An arylsulphinic acid in an aqueous alkaline medium is treated with an alkylating agent, eg, alkyl haUde or sulfate, by a procedure similar to that used for phenols. In the special case of P-hydroxyethylsulfones (precursors to vinylsulfone reactive dyes) the alkylating agent is ethylene oxide or ethylene chlorohydrin. 

The methylation of N-methyl derivatives of maleic hydrazide gives in general O-alkylated products. The opposite results are obtained with benzyl halides as alkylating agents. In this case the O-benzyl derivative (71) is formed, which is then further benzylated to the lV,0-dibenzyl derivative (72). When ethyl chloroacetate is used, the direction of alkylation is dependent on pH. At pH above 8, O-alkylation occurs at pH below 8, N-alkylation takes place exclusively in neutral and acidic solutions only IV-alkylated products are formed. 

The O-alkyl derivatives of those A-oxides, which exist partly or entirely as (V-hydroxy tautomers, may be made by primary synthesis (as above) or by alkylation. Thus, 5,5-diethyl-1-hydroxybarbituric acid (936 R = H) with methyl iodide/sodium ethoxide gives the 1-methoxy derivative (936 R = Me) or with benzenesulfonyl chloride/ethoxide it gives the alkylated derivative (936 R = PhS02) (78AJC2517). 

Alkylation of pyrazinones and quinoxalinones may be carried out under a variety of conditions and it is usually observed that while O-alkylation may occur under conditions of kinetic control, to yield the corresponding alkoxypyrazines or alkoxyquinoxalines, under thermodynamic control the A-alkylated products are formed. Alkylation using trialkyl-oxonium fluoroborate results in exclusive O-alkylation, and silylation under a variety of conditions (75MI21400) yields specifically the O-silylated products. Alkylation with methyl iodide or dimethyl sulfate invariably leads to A-methylation. 

Azolinones are protonated on oxygen in strongly acidic media. O-Alkylation of 2-azolinones can be effected with diazomethane thiazolinone (486) forms (487). Frequently O- and iV-alkylation occur together, especially in basic media where proton loss gives an ambident anion. 

Pyrazoles, isoxazoles and isothiazoles with a hydroxyl group in the 3-position (491 Z = NR, O, S) could isomerize to 3-azolinones (492). However, these compounds behave as true hydroxy derivatives and show phenolic properties. They give an intense violet color with iron(III) chloride and form a salt (493) with sodium hydroxide which can be O-alkylated by alkyl halides (to give 494 R = alkyl) and acylated by acid chlorides (to give 494 R = acyl). 

V-Hydroxy groups can be acetylated (AC2O) and O-alkylated in basic media by methyl iodide. 1-Hydroxypyrazole 2-oxides are quite strong acids. 

O-Alkylation of A-unsubstituted /3-lactams to give the corresponding 2-alkoxy-l- etines can be achieved by reaction of the azetidin-2-ones with hard electrophiles (trialkyloxonium tetrafluoroborates) followed by treatment with base (cf. Section 5.09.4.3.1) (67JHC619, 69LA(725)124). In contrast, reaction of the A-unsubstituted azetidin-2-ones (73) or their derived anions with a variety of softer electrophiles results in A-substitution, and some representative reactions are illustrated in Scheme 7. 

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