Pyrroles comparative

The reactivity sequence furan > tellurophene > selenophene > thiophene is thus the same for all three reactions and is in the reverse order of the aromaticities of the ring systems assessed by a number of different criteria. The relative rate for the trifluoroacetylation of pyrrole is 5.3 x lo . It is interesting to note that AT-methylpyrrole is approximately twice as reactive to trifluoroacetylation as pyrrole itself. The enhanced reactivity of pyrrole compared with the other monocyclic systems is also demonstrated by the relative rates of bromination of the 2-methoxycarbonyl derivatives, which gave the reactivity sequence pyrrole>furan > selenophene > thiophene, and by the rate data on the reaction of the iron tricarbonyl-complexed carbocation [C6H7Fe(CO)3] (35) with a further selection of heteroaromatic substrates (Scheme 5). The comparative rates of reaction from this substitution were 2-methylindole == AT-methylindole>indole > pyrrole > furan > thiophene (73CC540). 

As mentioned earlier (Section 3.18.4) thienopyrroles have been studied much more than other azaheteropentalenes. Thieno[2,3-f ]pyrrole (32) undergoes Vilsmeier formylation to yield a mixture of two products (43) and (44) in 90% and 10% yields, respectively. The major product is the C-5 substituted isomer (43) which is not surprising in view of the higher reactivity of pyrrole compared to thiophene. Upon deactivation of the pyrrole ring by the introduction of an ester function at C-5 as in (45) formylation occurs exclusively at C-2 to give aldehyde (46) in 95% yield (Scheme 8) (78AHC(22)183>. 

The principal difference in the mass spectra of the C-methyl-pyrroles compared with that of pyrrole is the appearance of the base peak at M — 1 resulting from the ready loss of a hydrogen radical from the methyl group. The initially formed fragment ion is most probably... 

The very high reactivity of pyrrole compared with furan in electrophilic substitutions is also confirmed by rate measurements of hydrogen-deuterium exchange in methanol-water-sulfuric acid mixtures53 (Table VI). The rate of exchange of pyrrole-2-d in 0.5%... 

A peculiar example of heterocoupling has been found in the electroreduction of a mixture of pyrrole (60) and 2,4,7-trinitrofluoren-9-one (59), which leads to the formation of two Meisenhemer anions (the major isomer (structure 61) from attack at position 3, the minor one from attack at position 1) arguably via coupling of the two radical anions (see Scheme 42) [131], Electro-oxidation of such anions gives a black polypyrrole film which differs from that obtained by the normal electro-oxidative polymerization of pyrrole (compare Section 6.3.4). 

Electrophilic attack on electron-rich pyrrole compared with attack on electron-rich aniline... 

Association constants were determined by Cram extraction methods, which revealed that the macrocycle 50 formed a strong complex with chloride (12 800 1300 M ). Proton NMR titration experiments conducted in CD2CI2 also revealed the size dependence selectivity of the caUx[n]pyrroles where bromide was foimd to bind approximately seven times stronger to the larger caUx[6]pyrrole compared to calix[4]pyrrole (710 25M for 50 against 10 for 47) [68]. 

This reaction sequence is much less prone to difficulties with isomerizations since the pyridine-like carbons of dipyrromethenes do not add protons. Yields are often low, however, since the intermediates do not survive the high temperatures. The more reactive, faster but less reliable system is certainly provided by the dipyrromethanes, in which the reactivity of the pyrrole units is comparable to activated benzene derivatives such as phenol or aniline. The situation is comparable with that found in peptide synthesis where the slow azide method gives cleaner products than the fast DCC-promoted condensations (see p. 234). 

Several biologically and pharmacologically active compounds have been prepared from the condensation of the acid chloride of 1-naphthoxyacetic acid with carbazole, iadole, or pyrrole ia 2A[ NaOH solution ia ethanol (63). Also, naphthyloxy derivatives of imidazole, benzimidazole, and benzotriazoles have been synthesized and screened for their antimicrobial, analgesic, and antiinflammatory activities. 2-Naphthyloxy derivatives are comparatively more active than 1-naphthyloxy derivatives (64). 

In keeping with its aromatic character, pyrrole is relatively difficult to hydrogenate, it does not ordinarily serve as a diene for Diels-Alder reactions, and does not undergo typical olefin reactions. Klectrophilic substitutions are the most characteristic reactions, and pyrrole has often been compared to phenol or... 

The NMR spectral properties of the parent heterocycles are summarized in Table 12. The signal for the pyrrole a-carbon is broadened as a result of coupling with the adjacent nitrogen-14 atom (c/. Section 3.01.4.3). While the frequencies observed for the /3-carbon atoms show a fairly systematic upheld shift with increasing electronegativity of the heteroatom, the shifts for the a-carbon atoms vary irregularly. The shifts are comparable with that for benzene, S 128.7. 

Resonance energies of ca. 90, 182 and 330 kJ moF have been estimated for pyrrole, indole and carbazole respectively by comparing their protonation constants with those for selected model compounds (72C1(L)335, 72TL5019). 

A comparison of the relative basicities of pyrrole, furan and thiophene may be made by comparing the pK values of their 2,5-di-t-butyl derivatives, which were found to be -1.01, —10.01 and —10.16, respectively. In each case protonation was shown by NMR to occur at position 2. The base-strengthening effect of alkyl substitution is clearly apparent by comparison of pyrrole and its alkyl derivatives, e.g. A-methylpyrrole has a pKa. for a-protonation of -2.9 and 2,3,4,5-tetramethylpyrrole has a pK of 4-3.7. In general, protonation of a-alkylpyrroles occurs at the a -position whereas /3-alkylpyrroles are protonated at the adjacent a-position. As expected, electron-withdrawing groups are base-weakening thus A-phenylpyrrole is reported to have a p/sTa of -5.8. The IR spectrum of the hydrochloride of 2-formylpyrrole indicates that protonation occurs mainly at the carbonyl oxygen atom and only to a limited extent at C-5. 

It is of interest to compare the stability of the protonated forms of benzo[u], benzo[Z>] and benzo[c] fused pyrroles, i.e. the cations derived from indolizines, indoles and isoindoles. Indolizine gives a stable pyridinium ion and does not polymerize in the presence of acid. 

Furan has the greater reactivity in cycloaddition reactions compared with pyrrole and thiophene the latter is the least reactive diene. However, A -substituted pyrroles show enhanced dienic character compared with the parent heterocycle. 

In many cases, substituents linked to a pyrrole, furan or thiophene ring show similar reactivity to those linked to a benzenoid nucleus. This generalization is not true for amino or hydroxyl groups. Hydroxy compounds exist largely, or entirely, in an alternative nonaromatic tautomeric form. Derivatives of this type show little resemblance in their reactions to anilines or phenols. Thienyl- and especially pyrryl- and furyl-methyl halides show enhanced reactivity compared with benzyl halides because the halogen is made more labile by electron release of the type shown below. Hydroxymethyl and aminomethyl groups on heteroaromatic nuclei are activated to nucleophilic attack by a similar effect. 

The sydnones may be represented by structures (123a-d), of which the zwitterionic structure (123a) most clearly implies an aromatic sextet. The diamagnetic susceptibility exaltation for Af-phenylsydnone of ll.Ox 10 cm moP is comparable with the corresponding value for pyrrole (10.2x10 ). 3-p-Bromophenylsydnone (123 R = H, R = p-bromophenyl) is essentially planar however, the O—N bond and 0(1)—C(5) bond lengths are not very different from normal single bond distances. 

The reaetivity order is pyrrole > fiiran > thiophene, which indicates that electron-donating capacity decreases in the order N > O > The order N > O is as expected on the basis of electronegativity, and O > S probably reflects the better overlap of the oxygen 2p orbital, as compared to the sulfur ip orbital, with the carbon 2p orbitals of the ring. 

In addition to electrophilic attack on the pyrrole ring in indole, there is the possibility for additions to the fused benzene ring. First examine the highest-occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) of indole. Which atoms contribute the most What should be the favored position for electrophilic attack Next, compare the energies of the various protonated forms of indole (C protonated only). These serve as models for adducts formed upon electrophilic addition. Which carbon on the pyrrole ring (C2 or C3) is favored for protonation Is this the same as the preference in pyrrole itself (see Chapter 15, Problem 2)1 If not, try to explain why not. Which of the carbons on the benzene ring is most susceptible to protonation Rationalize your result based on what you know about the reactivity of substituted benzenes toward electrophiles. Are any of the benzene carbons as reactive as the most reactive pyrrole carbon Explain. 

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