Oxidation with thallium acetate

Alkenes can also be oxidized with metallic acetates such as lead tetraacetate or thallium(III) acetate " to give bis-acetates of glycols. Oxidizing agents such as benzoquinone, Mn02, or 02, along with palladium acetate, have been used to convert conjugated dienes to l,4-diacetoxy-2-alkenes (1,4 addition). ... 

In a new reaction of the pyrano[2,3-c]azepines 40 with hydrazine hydrate, the first derivatives of the pyridazino[4,3-c]azepine system 42 (for example R1 = R2 = Me) have been described (Scheme 10). The rearrangement probably involves initial ring opening to the intermediate 41. Aromatisation of this system was achieved by further oxidation with thallium (III) nitrate or copper(II) acetate . 

Mercuric acetate and thallic acetate have also been used for the oxidative cydiza-tion of vinylallenes (Eq. 13.24) [29]. Exposure of vinylallene 75 to stoichiometric mercuric acetate in acetic acid led to cydopentenone 76 in 75% yield. With thallium acetate as the oxidant, the yield of 76 was 60%. The presumed mechanism of the oxidative cyclization involves a Nazarov cyclization of acetoxymercury intermediate 77. 

Enhancement by strong acids such as TFA is a general feature of oxidations with metal acetates. Metal trifluoroacetates in TFA are much more powerful oxidants (electrophiles) than the corresponding acetates in acetic acid. Activation of the metal oxidant in TFA has been observed with co-balt(III)217 249,259,27S 276 manganese(III),237,275 lead(IV),277-281 thallium-(III),282-287 cerium(IV),288 289 and copper(II).290 Similarly, the electrophilic properties of copper(I)291 and mercury(II)292 acetates are strongly enhanced by replacement of acetate by trifluoroacetate. It has been proposed217,276 that the potent oxidizing properties of Co(III) trifluoroacetate are due to ionization to the cationic Co(III) species,... 

Oxidathedetuageefeyek openes. 1,3,3-Trimethylcyclopropene (1) is converted into l,l-diacetoxy-2,3-dimethy 1-2-butene (2) by oxidation with mercuric acetate in methylene chloride at room temperature. Reaction of (1) with thallium triacetate or... 

The intermolecular examples of synthetic value are self-couplings, e.g. formation of the dimer (43) from benzylsesamol, in 85% yield using vanadium oxytrifluoride preparation of the biaryl (44 95%), from 4-methylveratrole, employing iron(III) chloride supported on silica and synthesis of 4,4 -dimeth-oxybiphenyl (69%) fr om anisole by oxidation with thallium(III) trifluoroacetate in the presence of catalytic palladium(II) acetate. This approach has been used in a natural product synthesis. The dimers (45) and (46) were prepared from appropriate derivatives of gallic acid, and transformed into schizandrin C (47) and an isomer respectively. ... 

Isobutylene oxide is produced in a way similar to propylene oxide and butylene oxide by a chlorohydrination route followed by reaction with Ca(OH)2. Direct catalytic liquid-phase oxidation using stoichiometric amounts of thallium acetate catalyst in aqueous acetic acid solution has been reported. An isobutylene oxide yield of 82% could be obtained. 

Formation of mixtures of products in these reactions can be attributed largely to the properties of the acetate group. The reactions of a number of cycloalkenes with thallium(III) salts have been investigated in some detail and the results obtained have served both to elucidate the stereochemistry of oxythallation and to underline the important role assumed by the anion of the metal salt in these oxidations. The most unambiguous evidence as to the stereochemistry of oxythallation comes from studies by Winstein on the oxythallation of norbornene (VII) and norbornadiene (VIII) with thal-lium(III) acetate in chloroform, in which the adducts (IX) and (X) could be precipitated from the reaction mixture by addition of pentane 128) (Scheme 11). Both by chemical means and by analogy with the oxymercuration... 

The same conclusion was drawn from the results obtained from careful studies of the stereochemistry of the glycol products formed on oxidation of cyclohexene with thallium(III) acetate 3, 83). When dry acetic acid was employed as solvent the product was mainly the tranr-diacetate (XI) in moist acetic acid, however, the mixture of glycol mono- (XII) and diacetates (XIII) which was obtained was mainly cis. These results have been interpreted in terms of initial trans oxythallation, ring inversion. 

Oxidation of the steroidal olefin (XXVII) with thallium(III) acetate gives mainly the allylic acetates (XXXI)-(XXXIII) (Scheme 15), again indicating that trans oxythallation is the preferred reaction course (19). Addition of the electrophile takes place from the less-hindered a-side of the molecule to give the thallinium ion (XXVIII), which by loss of a proton from C-4 would give the alkylthallium diacetate (XXIX). Decomposition of this intermediate by a Type 5 process is probably favorable, as it leads to the resonance-stabilized allylic carbonium ion (XXX), from which the observed products can be derived. Evidence in support of the decomposition process shown in Scheme 15 has been obtained from a study of the exchange reaction between frawr-crotylmercuric acetate and thallium(III) acetate in acetic acid (Scheme 16) (142). 

The reactions of TTN with a variety of unsaturated systems have been studied systematically during the last two years, and the results obtained clearly establish the synthetic utility of the reagent as a specific oxidant. Attempts were made in 1966 by Uemura et al. 162) to oxidize a,)8-unsatur-ated carbonyl compounds with thallium(III) acetate, but were unsuccessful. In 1970, however, Ollis and his co-workers 121-123) reported that prolonged treatment of highly activated chalcones (Scheme 20) with thal-... 

Method A A solution of 0.5 mmol of (2/ /S ,3R/S )-2,3-dialkyl-1,4-diarylbutane and 0.125 mL (1.0 mmol) of boron trifluoride-diethyl ether complex in 2 mL of trifluoroacctic acid is added to a suspension of 0.12 g (0.26 mmol) of thallium(III) oxide in 2 mL of trifluoroacetic acid at — 40°C to +25CC under an argon atmosphere. The dark colored solution is stirred until the reaction is complete, diluted with ethyl acetate, then washed successively with water (twice) and sat. aq NaCl. Evaporation of the dried extract gives the crude product. In a variant of this method the boron trifluoride-diethyl ether complex can be omitted. 

Thallium trifluoroacetate has not enjoyed widespread use as a reagent for quinone synthesis, possibly because it is still a relatively new reagent but more probably because of its toxicity. One example of its use lies in the synthesis of metacyclophanes and related compounds as reported by Tashiro et al Thus the r-butylphenol (59) gave the bisquinone (61), while the phenol (60) afforded the monoquinone (62). An alternative and more practical synthesis of the bisquinone (61) for large scale work involved dealkylation to afford the bisphenol (63) which was then treated with sodium nitrite to give the bisoxime (64). Hydrolysis of the bisoxime did not give the quinone (61), but it could be obtained by zinc/acetic acid reduction of the bisoxime followed by oxidation with nitric acid (Scheme 13). 

Enamine oxidation (6,406) synthesis of vinblastine (3). Treatment of enamine (2) with thallium(III) acetate followed by NaBK, reduction affords vinblastine (3) in 30% overall yield from the N-oxide 1. In contrast, treatment of 2 with OSO4 followed by NaBH4 affords leurosidine (4) in 25% overall yield. Potier etal. argue that the transformation 2— 3 is governed by stereoelectronic factors, whereas steric approach control governs 2 — 4. These transformations may have biogenetic implications. 

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