Photo-Fries phenolic esters

A variant of Method B is the cyclization of the phenolic 2-(chloroacetamido)benzophenones 9, produced by photo-Fries rearrangement (see Houben-Weyl, Vol. 7/2a, p 1148 ff) of the esters 8, with ammonia via the corresponding iodoacetyl compounds.195... 

As a general rule, electron-donating substiments attached to the phenolic ring enhance photoreactivity, whereas electron-withdrawing substituents produce the opposite effect [5,6,29], For instance, the relative photo-Fries quanmm yield is more than two times higher for para-hydroxyphenyl benzoate than for para-acetylphenyl benzoate [5,6], Esters with susbstituents such as Cl or CH3 at the para position, as well as the unsubstituted compounds, have intermediate... 

Ortho- and para-rearrangement and phenol formation on uv-irradiation of aryl esters are accompanied in several cases by decarboxylation,37,60,62,64,80,81 represented for 3,5-di-t-butylphenyl benzoate by the equation 118 -> 119-122. It was shown that this reaction cannot be sensitized,64 but the dramatic differences in product distribution could be observed by changing of the solvent.60,84 The results in Table VI indicate that in polar solvents the decarboxylation process is minimized while the formation of the photo-Fries rearrangement 119 is enhanced. The reverse appears to be true when nonpolar ethereal solvents are used. A considerable amount of biaryls are formed, and hence this reaction may prove useful for the preparation of biaryls and alkylary Is. 

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. 

Fries rearrangement of aromatic formate esters suggests that phenols are the major products (.24) obtained in the reaction. As poly(p-hydroxystyrene) is remarkably clear in the deep UV, it is likely that poly(p-formyloxystyrene) will not suffer from the same problem of photostabilization upon exposure as was the case with poly (p-acetoxystyrene). This expectation was confirmed by our study of the photo-Fries reaction of p-cresyl formate no ortho rearranged product was isolated after reaction while p-cresol and a small amount of starting material were obtained. 

Another example of the effect of confined medium is found during photo-Fries rearrangement of naphthyl esters in zeolites [103,104]. Upon photolysis in isotropic solution 1-naphthyl benzoate undergoes the photo-Fries rearrangement to yield both ortho (2-) and para (4-) phenolic ketones (Sch. 4). When this ester is included in NaY zeolite and irradiated the main product (96%) is the ortho isomer. This remarkable ortho-selectivity within zeolites has been rationalized on the basis of interactions of the reactant 1-naphthyl benzoate and intermediate radicals with the sodium ion. Due to restrictions imposed by the medium the benzoyl radical, once formed, is compelled to react only with the accessible ortho position. 

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 Fries rearrangement proceeds via ionic intermediates but the exact mechanistic pathway (whether it is inter- or intramolecular) is still under debate. There are many reports in the literature that present evidence to support either of the pathways, but it appears that the exact route depends on the structure of the substrates and the reaction conditions. The scheme depicts the formation of an ortho-acylated phenol from a substituted phenolic ester in the presence of aluminum trihalide catalyst. The photo-Fries rearrangement proceeds via radical intermediates. ... 

Research in the laboratory of P. Magnus showed that the macrocyclic skeleton of diazonamide could be synthesized with the use of macroiactonization followed by a photo-Fries rearrangement. First, the aromatic carboxylic acid and the phenol were coupled with EDCI to form the macrolactone (phenolic ester), which was then exposed to light at high-dilution to cleanly afford the macrocyclic ortho-acylated phenol skeleton of diazonamide. 

Acid-catalyzed reactions of the phenol esters resulting in the formation of phenolic ketones are known as Fries rearrangements. Aluminum chloride was the first catalyst used but other Lewis acids are also effective. Examples from the recent literature are shown in equations (44) to (48). A nitrogen analog, that is the rearrangement of an acyl derivative of an arylamine, is shown in equation (49). Photo-Fries rearrangement reactions have also been studied in detail and are exemplified in equations (50) to (55). 

Miranda, M. A., Primo, J., and Tormos, R., Studies on the synthesis of precocenes the photo-Fries rearrangement of esters of a,P-unsaturated carboxylic acids and meta-oxygenated phenols, Het-erocydes, 27, 673,1988. 

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