Quinodimethane formation

A synthesis of (+)-estradiol from an alkyl 1,3-dihydrobenzo[c]thiophene-2,2-dioxide involving o-quinodimethane formation by thermal extrusion of SO2 and subsequent cycloaddition has been achieved in an overall yield of 50% (ref. 143). Thus a chiral cyclopentanone component (ref. 144) was used to alkylate the appropriate benzothiophene dioxide and the required tetracyclic stucture obtained directly with avoidance of the customary hydrogenation. It was found desirable at the alkylation stage to enhance deprotonation at Cl by having a cyano group in the benzenoid ring. The ( anotetracycle (R CN) was reacted... 

Hehre and co-workers have used this approach for the investigation of biradicals and other reactive neutral molecules. For example, by using the bracketing approach, they were able to determine the proton affinities of o- and p-xylylene (o- and p-quinodimethane (lo and Ip) Figure 5.3), from which they were able to determine the enthalpies of formation of the reactive, Kekule molecules. They found the proton affinity of the meta isomer to be too high to be measured directly by bracketing, but were able to assign a lower limit, and subsequently a lower limit to the enthalpy of formation of the m-xylylene diradicals. 

Sulfolene dioxide thermolysis has also been applied to formation of o-quinodimethanes. 

Utley et al. were able to perform Diels-Alder reactions in aqueous solution via electrogenerated or//zo-quinodimcthancs.34 They cathod-ically generated the or// o-quinodimethanes in aqueous electrolyte in the presence of /V-mcthylmaleimide, which is both the redox mediator and the dienophile. Competition from the electrohydrodimerization of /V-mcthy Irrialci midc is suppressed, allowing for the efficient formation of the endo-adduct (Scheme 12.1). 

Copolymers of [60] fullerene and in situ generated bis-o-quinodimethanes were prepared by Gtigel and colleagues114. In order to get soluble polymers, it proved necessary to introduce flexible groups on the bis-o-quinodimethanes. A maximum of 10 [60]fullerene units were incorporated into oligomers when [60]fullerene was reacted with a 7 3 mixture of 157 and 158 (i.e. with o-quinodimethanes 159 and 160). Monosulfone 158 was added to induce the formation of triple cycloadducts of [60]fullerene. This prevented polymerization of the oligomer (quadruple cycloadditions to [60]fullerene are hard to accomplish) and enhanced its solubility. 

The formation of l,4-dihydro-2,3-benzodioxin 5 from the benzocyclobutene 141/o-quinodimethane 142 equilibrium has been utilized as a trapping experiment for the kinetic analysis of diradical reactions (Scheme 38) <2002CC1594, 1988CB1357>. 

Chemical oxidation of the TTF groups in compounds 34 and 35 has been achieved by reaction with an excess of iodine in dichloromethane solution, leading to new low-energy absorptions in the UV/visible spectra which are diagnostic of TTF cation radicals the broad absorption at = 830 nm for the iodide salt of 35 suggests the formation of aggregated TTF species. A charge transfer complex formed by 35 and tetracyano-p-quinodimethane (TCNQ) has been isolated as an insoluble black powder. The stoichiometry is (35), (TCNQ)3 (i.e. 8 TTF units 3... 

Fig. 15. Proposed mechanism for the formation of poly(o-xy]ylene) from the thermolysis of o-quinodimethane spirodimer 24...

Overall then, the literature indicates that the pyrolysis products of be-nzocyclobutene arise from the initial formation of o-quinodimethane which can, depending upon the reaction conditions, react to form either cyclic products or linear oligomers. Relating all of this to the structure of the polymers obtained from bisbenzocyclobutenes is somewhat difficult since the chemical systems and reaction conditions described in the various papers are rather different to those encountered in a typical bisbenzocyclobutene polymerization. Nevertheless, certain speculations have been made which are at least to a first approximation consistent with the experimental evidence available thus far. 

An alternative polymerization mechanism and polymer architecture has been proposed by Kirchhoff [1, 2, 3], Tan and Arnold [77], By this mechanism, polybenzocyclobutenes which do not contain reactive sites of unsaturation are proposed to polymerize by the 1,4 addition of the o-quinodimethane intermediates to give a substantially linear poly(o-xylylene) structure. Since the monomers all contain at least two benzocyclobutene units the net result of this reaction will to a first approximation be a ladder type polymer as shown in Fig. 17. The formation of a true ladder polymer however would require that all... 

The use of benzocyclobutene as the source of the diene in a Diels-Alder polymerization offers a unique solution to the problems described above. Benzocyclobutene containing monomers can be stored indefinitely at room temperature without concern for further advancement of the molecular weight. It is only when benzocyclobutene is heated to temperatures of approximately 200 °C that the reactive diene, o-quinodimethane, is formed at a significant rate and enters into reaction with the dienophile. The only requirement of the dienophile is that it must be stable at these temperatures and not undergo reaction with itself. The most common dienophiles that have been successfully used in the formation of polymers from AB type benzocyclobutene monomers have been acetylenes, olefins and maleimides. 

Polystyrene-bound o-quinodimethanes, which are formed upon thermolysis of ben-zocyclobutanes, can be converted into 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline derivatives by reaction with /V-sulfonylimines. Reaction of o-quinodimethanes with electron-poor nitriles leads to the formation of 1,4-dihydroisoquinolines, which undergo elimination with simultaneous release of isoquinolines into solution (Entry 7, Table 15.25). 

The products formed in these reactions are very sensitive to the functionality on the carbenoid. A study of Schechter and coworkers132 using 2-diazo-1,3-indandione (152) nicely illustrates this point. The resulting carbenoid would be expected to be more electrophilic than the one generated from alkyl diazoacetate and consequently ihodium(II) acetate could be used as catalyst. The alkylation products (153) were formed in high yields without any evidence of cycloheptatrienes (Scheme 33). As can be seen in the case for anisole, the reaction was much more selective than the rhodium(II)-catalyzed decomposition of ethyl diazoacetate (Scheme 31), resulting in the exclusive formation of the para product. Application of this alkylation process to the synthesis of a novel p-quinodimethane has been reported.133 Similar alkylation products were formed when dimethyl diazomalonate was decomposed in the presence of aromatic systems, but as these earlier studies134 were carried out either photochemically or by copper catalysis, side reactions also occurred, as can be seen in the reaction with toluene (equation 36). 

Cyclizations can occur with heteroatoms present in the tether as long as the groups are not strongly nucleophilic. Decomposition of a-diazo- 3-arylmethanesulfonyl esters (173) resulted in the formation of 1,3-dihydrobenzo[c]thiophene 2,2-dioxides (174 equation 38),143 which are valuable precursors to o-quinodimethanes. Reaction with /V-aryldiazoamides (175) has been shown to be a useful method for preparing 2(3//)-indolinones (176 equation 39),22a while reaction of a-diazo-(3-keto esters (177) has been developed as a process to synthesize 3-acetylbenzofiiran-2(3//)-ones (178 equation 40).144... 

Treatment of [PcKV-Pf PCsH dba)] with p-benzoquinone affords [Pd (T -Pf PCsPySJ T -p-benzoquinone)] (10JCS(D)7921). Palladium-catalyzed distannylation of o-quinodimethanes in the presence of 2-diphenyl-phosphinopyridine involves the formation of organometallic forms (06OL4157). 

Other benzylic electrophiles which can lead to unexpected products are 1,2- or l,4-bis(halomethyl)benzenes. On treatment with a nucleophile, oxidation of the nucleophile instead of nucleophilic substitution may occur, followed by the formation of highly reactive quinodimethanes, which can either oligomerize or undergo addition or cycloaddition reactions (Scheme 4.29). The outcome of these reactions can, however, be controlled by choosing the right conditions, as demonstrated by the numerous report of successful Sn2 reactions at 1,2- or l,4-bis(halomethyl)benzenes (see, e.g., Ref. [125]). 

Scheme4.29. Formation of quinodimethanes from 1,2-bis(bromomethyl)benzenes and iodide [126].

When A.A-dimethylisoindolinium bromide is treated with phenyl-lithium, it gives V-methylisoindole via the ylid (54).2 59,60 An attempt to prepare benzo[c]thiophene via the analogous ylid (55) failed. Thus, when l,3-dihydrobenzo[c]thiophene methylsulfonium iodide was treated with phenyllithium, it gave a mixture of methyl phenyl sulfide, spiro[5.5]-l-methylthio-2,3-benzo-6-methylthio-methyleneundeca-7,9-diene (56), and 3,4-bis(methylthio)-l,2 5,6-dibenzo-l,5-cyclooctadiene (57).59,60 The formation of methyl phenyl sulfide may be explained by the formation and ring cleavage of compound 58, and compounds 56 and 57 arise by Diels-Alder dimerization of the o-quinodimethane (59) formed by ring cleavage of the ylid (55). 

In 1947 Szwarc prepared a white polymeric material u by rapid flow pyrolysis of p-xylene under reduced pressure. On the basis of p-xylylene diiodide 2) detected in the reaction mixture of the pyrolysis products with iodine gas he proposed a formation 1,3) of p-xylylene(p-quinodimethane) (QM) in this pyrolysis. He claimed the polymeric material to be poly-p-xylylene(poly-QM)and proposed a mechanism 2) for the formation of poly-QM, involving thermal cleavage of carbon-hydrogen bonds of p-xylene to yield p-xylyl radicals which collide with each other to give p-xylene and QM through disproportionation. QM condenses and polymerizes to produce poly-QM. 

The cobalt(I)-mediated [2 + 2 + 2] cycloaddition of 1,5-diynes with mono-alkynes provides access to benzocyclobutene derivatives (Scheme 24). Thermal rearrangement of benzocyclobutenes into o-quinodimethane and subsequent Diels-Alder reaction with an alkene moiety allow the formation of a tricyclic compound. 

Chelidonine, a representative benzo[c]phenanthridine alkaloid (1,2), was synthesized as the first application of this reaction in natural product synthesis (145). Initial thermal opening of the four-membered ring in 299 led to the formation of a transient -o-quinodimethane (301), which has a dienamide structure in the diene part and is then trapped by the suitably positioned multiple bond in the same molecule. They applied this intramolecular reaction to the acetylenic cyclobutene 300 for the synthesis of ( )-chelidonine (Scheme 110). 

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