Phenyl esters Fries rearrangement

A photochemical variant, the so-called photo-Fries rearrangement, proceeds via intermediate formation of radical species. Upon irradiation the phenyl ester molecules (1) are promoted into an excited state 11. By homolytic bond cleavage the radical-pair 12 is formed that reacts to the semiquinone 13, which in turn tautomerizes to the p-acylphenol 3. The corresponding ort/zo-derivative is formed in an analogous way ... 

Zeolites have also been described as efficient catalysts for acylation,11 for the preparation of acetals,12 and proved to be useful for acetal hydrolysis13 or intramolecular lactonization of hydroxyalkanoic acids,14 to name a few examples of their application. A number of isomerizations and skeletal rearrangements promoted by these porous materials have also been reported. From these, we can underline two important industrial processes such as the isomerization of xylenes,2 and the Beckmann rearrangement of cyclohexanone oxime to e-caprolactam,15 which is an intermediate for polyamide manufacture. Other applications include the conversion of n-butane to isobutane,16 Fries rearrangement of phenyl esters,17 or the rearrangement of epoxides to carbonyl compounds.18... 

Fries rearrangement.1 Rearrangement of phenyl esters with Lewis acids results in a mixture of ortho- and para-phenolic ketones. In contrast, reaction of an o-bromophenyl ester with sec-butyllithium results in exclusive formation of the orf/jo-phenolic ketone by an intramolecular acyl rearrangement.2... 

The radiation induced side-chain modification of polymers containing pendant phenyl ester groups has been the object of several studies as some undergo a photo-Fries rearrangement (JJ while others such as... 

From the point of view of quantum yields calculation, photo-Fries rearrangement, including phenol and products formation, represents a photoreaction (expressed by Eq. 3) in which all products absorb intensively in the absorption region of the starting phenyl ester A. 

Photolysis of phenyl 2-thenoate leads to a 3 2 mixture of ortho and para Fries rearrangement products (Scheme 109) (74H(2)423). The photolytic rearrangement of a thiolester to a thiopyrone has been investigated with thiophenecarbothioic acid S-aryl esters as substrates (79LA2043). In the case of the 2-carbothioic acid esters, a 3-bromo substituent is necessary for this rearrangement. On the other hand, such a substituent is not necessary for the 3-carbothioic acid derivatives. In both cases, aldehydes may also be formed, sometimes as the main products (Scheme 110). 

Although there is evidence that chromone syntheses which proceed by the cyclization of phenyl esters under Friedel-Crafts conditions may involve a Fries rearrangement and hence require the formation of one bond adjacent to the heteroatom, syntheses of chromones from phenols will be considered together in this section. The Simonis reaction (530R(7)l)... 

It is pertinent to note that the ester (472) yields a chromone on treatment with hydrogen fluoride (54LA(587)16), suggesting the intervention of a Fries rearrangement once again. The same applies in the formation of 2-chlorochromone from phenyl 3,3-dichloropropenoate <60CR(250)2819). 

A variety of aromatic esters undergo light-induced rearrangements similar to the Fries rearrangement. Irradiation of 2-hydroxyphenyl acetate (Formula 419) gives o-dihydroxybenzene (Formula 420) (46%), 2,3-dihydroxyacetophenone (Formula 421) (22%) and 3,4-dihydroxy-acetophenone (Formula 422) (18%) (186). Phenyl acetate gives 2-... 

Fries rearrangement—that is, the transformation of phenolic esters to isomeric hydroxyphenyl ketones—is related to Friedel-Crafts acylations.392,393 Olah et al.394 have found a convenient way to perform the Fries rearrangement of a variety of substituted phenolic esters in the presence of Nafion-H in nitrobenzene as solvent [Eq. (5.153)]. A catalytic amount of Nafion-H is satisfactory, and the catalyst can be recycled. In contrast, Nafion-silica nanocomposites, in general, exhibit low activities in the Fries rearrangement of phenyl acetate to yield isomeric hydroxyacetophe-nones.239,395 In a recent study, BF3-H20 was found to be highly efficient under mild conditions (80°C, 1 h) to transform phenolic esters of aliphatic and aromatic carboxylic acids to ketones (71-99% yields).396 In most cases the para-hydroxyphenyl isomers are formed with high (up to 94%) selectivity. 

The various methods for introducing a formyl group (—COH) into a phenolic nucleus are discussed in Section 6.10.1, p. 990. The formation of phenolic ketones (e.g. HO-C6H4-COR) by the standard Friedel-Crafts acylation procedure (i.e. the reaction of a phenol with an acid chloride in the presence of aluminium chloride) does not always give acceptable yields except in the case of polyhydroxyphenols (p. 1006). The preferred method is to convert the phenol into the phenyl ester and to subject this to rearrangement (the Fries reaction) in the presence of aluminium chloride. 

Fries rearrangement and phenol acetylation The Fries rearrangement is the acid catalysed transformation of aryl esters into hydroxyarylketones. Both this rearrangement and the two-step transformation (esterification, Fries rearrangement) in one-pot operation of phenols with carboxylic acid or anhydrides will be examined hereafter. Most studies in which acid zeolites were used as catalysts (Tables 3.6 and 3.7) deal with the synthesis of o- and p-hydroxyacetophenones (o- and p-HAP) either by the Fries rearrangement of phenyl acetate [Reaction (3.5)] ... 

Photochemical processes of CD complexes,1 Differences in photochemical reactions conducted in solution and in CD complexes have been reviewed. For example, photo-Fries rearrangement of phenyl esters in solvents results in a mixture of o- and p-phenolic ketones via a radical reaction. Rearrangement of the same encapsulated ester results in exclusive rearrangement to the ortho-position (equa-... 

The photolysis of phenyl benzoate 8.88 is an example of the photo-Fries rearrangement, in which the acyl radical is created close to a phenoxy radical 8.89. The C—O bond is weakened by the presence of an electron in the n orbital of the ester conjugated system. The radical coupling then shows the usual selectivity for C—C bond formation, with the para selectivity in line with the coefficients of the SOMO of the phenoxy radical (see page 291). 

When treated with acid chlorides and acid anhydrides, phenols form esters. Under Friedel-Crafts conditions, phenolic esters undergo a Fries rearrangement in which the acyl group migrates to the 2- and 4-positions. Thus, treatment of the ester 11 with aluminium chloride in an inert solvent gives a mixture of 2- and 4-hydroxyacetophenones [(hydroxy-phenyl)ethanones] C-acylation has occurred (Scheme 4.7). The two isomers are separable and this is a useful method for the production of phenolic ketones. The mechanism remains uncertain, but it would appear that the acylium ion (RCO" ) is generated and that a Friedel-Crafts mechanism operates. 

The exact mechanism has still not been completely worked out. " Opinions have been expressed that it is completely intermolecular, ° completely intramolecular, and partially inter- and intramolecular. One way to decide between inter- and intramolecular processes is to run the reaction of the phenolic ester in the presence of another aromatic compound, say, toluene. If some of the toluene is acylated, the reaction must be, at least in part, intermolecular. If the toluene is not acylated, the presumption is that the reaction is intramolecular, though this is not certain, for it may be that the toluene is not attacked because it is less active than the other. A number of such experiments (called crossover experiments) have been carried out sometimes crossover products have been found and sometimes not. As in 11-17, an initial complex (68) is formed between the substrate and the catalyst, so that a catalyst/substrate molar ratio of at least 1 1 is required. In the presence of aluminum chloride, the Fries rearrangement can be induced with micro-wave irradiationSimply heating phenyl acetate with microwave irradiation gives the Fries rearrangement. " The Fries rearrangement has been carried out in ionic melts. 

Heating a phenol ester in the presence of Nafion-H gave good yields of the hydroxy phenyl ketone.This Fries rearrangement gave a mixture of the ortho and para hydroxy compounds in a 1 2-2.5 ratio (Eqn. 22.19). A study of the rearrangement of phenyl benzoate over a number of solid acid catalysts indicated that Nafion-H was more effective than montmorilIonite or amorphous aluminum silicate for this reaction. " ... 

The photoreactivity of phenyl benzoates in which the para positions of both rings are substituted has been examined in liquid crystalline media and compared with the results obtained in isotropic solution.The photoreactivity of phenyl esters of cyclohexane carboxylic acids in which the para position of the phenyl ring and the 4-position of the cyclohexane ring are substituted were also studied under the same conditions.The products were not identified but were assumed to arise from photo-Fries rearrangement based upon the development of absorption in the ultra-violet spectrum assignable to ortho-hydroxyphenyl ketones. The relative quantum yields of the rearrangements were correlated with the viscosity and order of the liquid crystalline phase. 

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