Oxidation reactions allylic oxygenation

In contrast to oxidation in water, it has been found that 1-alkenes are directly oxidized with molecular oxygen in anhydrous, aprotic solvents, when a catalyst system of PdCl2(MeCN)2 and CuCl is used together with HMPA. In the absence of HMPA, no reaction takes place(100]. In the oxidation of 1-decene, the Oj uptake correlates with the amount of 2-decanone formed, and up to 0.5 mol of O2 is consumed for the production of 1 mol of the ketone. This result shows that both O atoms of molecular oxygen are incorporated into the product, and a bimetallic Pd(II) hydroperoxide coupled with a Cu salt is involved in oxidation of this type, and that the well known redox catalysis of PdXi and CuX is not always operalive[10 ]. The oxidation under anhydrous conditions is unique in terms of the regioselective formation of aldehyde 59 from X-allyl-A -methylbenzamide (58), whereas the use of aqueous DME results in the predominant formation of the methyl ketone 60. Similar results are obtained with allylic acetates and allylic carbonates[102]. The complete reversal of the regioselectivity in PdCli-catalyzed oxidation of alkenes is remarkable. 

Among the oxidants that add oxygen at carbon-carbon double bonds is singlet oxygen.161 For most alkenes this reaction proceeds with the removal of an allylic... 

Danishefsky dienes [98] cycloadd to Cjq in refluxing toluene or benzene [5, 38, 99-101]. The diene 103 adds in 60% yield to Cjq to give the desilylated ketone 104 [5,101]. Acid-catalyzed methanol elimination then furnishes the enone 105 in 82% yield (Scheme 4.17). As already described, this enone can be reduced by DIBAL-H to the corresponding alcohol for further functionalization. The same a,(3-un-saturated alcohol can also be obtained in better yield by Diels-Alder reaction of Cg0 with butadiene, followed by oxidation with singlet oxygen to the allylic hydroperoxide and PPhj reduction to the desired alcohol [101]. This sequence yields the allylic alcohol in 53%, starting from Cjq without the need of isolating intermediates. 

Heterogeneous palladium catalysts proved to be active in the conversion of simple alkenes to the corresponding allylic acetates, carbonyl compounds, and carboxylic acids.694 704 Allyl acetate or acrylic acid from propylene was selectively produced on a palladium on charcoal catalyst depending on catalyst pretreatment and reaction conditions.694 Allylic oxidation with singlet oxygen to yield allylic hydroperoxides is discussed in Section 9.2.2. 

Oxygenation of allylic alcohols. This Ru(II) complex, as well as RuBr2[P(C6H5)3]3 and RuH(OAc)[P(C6H5)3]3, catalyzes the oxidation of allylic alcohols to 2,/J-unsaturated ketones or aldehydes by molecular oxygen with retention of configuration. The oxidation of retinol to retinal (second example) requires addition of 2,6-dimethylpyridine to prevent side reactions.2... 

The overall activation energy for both processes is about 60 kJ/mol which is one half of the value for the activation energy of oxygen diffusion into the crystalline region of HDPE [65]. The lower values of activation energy for oxidation of allyl radicals show on the participation of reactions of such macroradicals which are in the close proximity of amorphous regions. 

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