Radical addition reactions with boron compounds

The absence of an EPR signal in solution or in the solid state is indicative of a singlet ground state for the diradical ( BuBP Pr2)2- An indication of the radical character of this derivative is provided by a variety of facile oxidative addition reactions (Scheme 9.12). " For example, the treatment of ( BuBP Pr2)2 with diphenyl diselenide (or elemental selenium) produces a bicyclic compound in which a selenium atom bridges the two boron atoms. Trimethyl tin hydride reacts rapidly with ( BuBP Pr2)2 to give the trans adduct. Finally, ( BuBP Pr2)2 is slowly oxidised by deuterated chloroform to produce a R,R -dichloro adduct as a mixture of cis and trans isomers. 

The selenosulfonates (26) comprise another class of selenenyl pseudohalides. They are stable, crystalline compounds available from the reaction of selenenyl halides with sulftnate salts (Scheme 10) or more conveniently from the oxidation of either sulfonohydrazides (ArS02NHNH2) or sulftnic acids (ArS02H) with benzeneseleninic acid (27) (equations 21 and 22). Selenosulfonates add to alkenes via an electrophilic mechanism catalyzed by boron trifluoride etherate, or via a radical mechanism initiated thermally or photolytically. The two reaction modes produce complementary regioselectivity, but only the electrophilic processes are stereospecific (anti). Similar radical additions to acetylenes and allenes have been reported, with the regio- and stereochemistry as shown in Scheme 11. When these selenosulfonation reactions are used in conjunction with subsequent selenoxide eliminations or [2,3] sigmatropic rearrangements, they provide access to a variety of unsaturated sulfone products. 

The reaction of (fluoroalkenyl)carboranes with potassium permanganate in acetone leads to formation of a-diketones [119. These compounds react by photochemical reaction in which the radical formation at boron is followed by addition to the double bond [120] (equation 92). 

The first discovered reactions at the double bond of alkenylboronates were additions of free radicals [21]. Bromotrichloromethane gave, after initiation with light or in the presence of azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN), the corresponding a-bromoboronate in excellent yield (Scheme 9.9). These products were the first compounds of this class of boronic esters and the starting point of a rich chemistry [22]. Hydrogen bromide, under irradiation with ultraviolet light, led to 2-bromoethaneboronate [23, 24]. 

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