Radical allylic substitution

Step 1 Free-radical allylic substitution (Mechanism 15-2) R—H + Br2 R—Br + HBr... 

Formation of isomers in free-radical allylic substitution is a general rule. In this case, abstraction of a hydrogen atom from C4 of the parent molecule leads to the formation of a delocalized allylic radical, with spin density distributed between two carbon atoms C-4 and C-6. Then this radical abstracts the bromine atom from NBS and adds it to one or the other position (Fig. 8) ... 

The inevitable formation of isomers should be taken into account when planning syntheses of PCA involving free-radical allylic substitution. 

Bromination appears to involve substitution rather than addition. Baldwin and Kuntz (I960) report that bromination of butyl rubber with elemental bromine is accompanied by the formation of large amounts of HBr. Using ozonolysis techniques it was found that unsaturation did not greatly change with bromination. It has thus been inferred (Makowski, 1%9) that the reaction proceeds by a free radical allylic substitution rather than by an ionic mechanism, e.g. 

A consequence of delocalization is that resonance-stabilized allylic intermediates can readily participate in reactions of unsaturated molecules. For example, although halogens can add to aUcenes to give the corresponding vicinal dihalides (Section 12-5) by an ionic mechaiusm, the course of this reaction is changed with added radical iiutiators (or on irradiation) and with the halogen present only in low concentrations. These conditions slow the ionic addition pathway sufficiently to allow a faster radical chain mechanism to take over, leading to radical allylic substitution. ... 

This allyl transfer reaction, which is a valuable synthetic method, has been shown to be a free-radical chain substitution (SH2 ), namely... 

In type A reactions one electron is removed from one of the two double bonds to form a cation radical, and allylic substitution and oxidative addition take place as the following reactions. On the other hand, in type B reactions the initial electron transfer from the double bond is accompanied by a transannular reaction between the two double bonds. 

Also azide radicals generated by anodic oxidation of sodium azide in the presence of olefins afford in acetic acid additive dimers, products of allylic substitution and... 

Allylic CH bonds Aliphatic alkenes frequently undergo allylic substitution by oxidation of the double bond to a radical cation that undergoes deprotonation at the allylic position and subsequent oxidation of the resulting allyl radical to a cation, which finally combines with the nucleophiles from the electrolyte [21, 22]. The selectivity is mostly low. Regioselec-tive allylic substitution or dehydrogenation is, however, found in some cases with activated alkenes, for example, -ionone that reacts to (1) (Fig. 5) as a major product [23], menthone enolacetate that yields 90% (2) [24], and 3,7-dimethyl-6-octen-l-ol... 

Acetoxylation proceeds mostly via the radical cation of the olefin. Aliphatic alkenes, however, undergo allylic substitution and rearrangement predominantly rather than addition [224, 225]. Aryl-substituted alkenes react by addition to vic-disubstituted acetates, in which the dia-stereoselectivity of the product formation indicates a cyclic acetoxonium ion as intermediate [226, 227]. In acenaphthenes, the cis portion of the diacetoxy product is significantly larger in the anodic process than in the chemical ones indicating that some steric shielding through the electrode is involved [228]. 

A wide application of Newcomb s method provides a variety of N-heterocyc-lic systems, such as perhydroindoles, pyrrolizidines and aza-brigded bicycles [59, W, 146], The mild reaction conditions are compatible with several funtional groups of the substrate and several trapping agents to functionalize the cyclized product. 2-Substituted pyrrolizidines 132 are accessible by tandem cyclization of iV-allyl-substituted PTOC carbamate 131. In this case the allyl group on the nitrogen serves as an internal trap for the intermediate carbon radical. The Af-methylcyclohept-4-enaminium radical cation, produced from the corres-... 

The radical addition of halogen to an alkene has been referred to briefly in Section 9.3.2. We saw an example of bromination of the double bond in cyclohexene as an unwanted side-reaction in some allylic substitution reactions. The mechanism is quite straightforward, and follows a sequence we should now be able to predict. 

By far the most generally useful synthetic application of allyltributyltin is in the complementary set of transition metal- and radical-mediated substitution reactions. When the halide substrates are benzylic, allylic, aromatic or acyl, transition metal catalysis is usually the method of choice for allyl transfer from tin to carbon. When the halide (or halide equivalent) substrate is aliphatic or alicyclic, radical chain conditions are appropriate, as g-hydrogen elimination is generally not a problem in these cases. 

The relative stabilities of radicals follow the same trend as for carhoca-tions. Like carbocations, radicals are electron deficient, and are stabilized by hyperconjugation. Therefore, the most substituted radical is most stable. For example, a 3° alkyl radical is more stable than a 2° alkyl radical, which in turn is more stable than a 1° alkyl radical. Allyl and benzyl radicals are more stable than alkyl radicals, because their unpaired electrons are delocalized. Electron delocalization increases the stability of a molecule. The more stable a radical, the faster it can be formed. Therefore, a hydrogen atom, bonded to either an allylic carbon or a benzylic carbon, is substituted more selectively in the halogenation reaction. The percentage substitution at allylic and benzyhc carbons is greater in the case of bromination than in the case of chlorination, because a bromine radical is more selective. 

The photoinitiated reactions of thiocyanogen (LXV) involve the thiocyanate radical and result in allylic substitution and addition.8 9 The relative proportions of the products vary with the structure of the olefin, e.g., cyclohexene gives a 1 1 mixture whereas octene-1 gives almost exclusively the addition product. 

When chlorination or bromination of alkenes is carried out in the gas phase at high temperature, addition to the double bond becomes less significant and substitution at the allylic position becomes the dominant reaction.153-155 In chlorination studied more thoroughly a small amount of oxygen and a liquid film enhance substitution, which is a radical process in the transformation of linear alkenes. Branched alkenes such as isobutylene behave exceptionally, since they yield allyl-substituted product even at low temperature. This reaction, however, is an ionic reaction.156 Despite the possibility of significant resonance stabilization of the allylic radical, the reactivity of different hydrogens in alkenes in allylic chlorination is very similar to that of alkanes. This is in accordance with the reactivity of benzylic hydrogens in chlorination. 

The radical mechanism has also been proposed as a general mechanism for oxidation of alkenes and aromatics, but several objections have been raised because of the absence of products typically associated with radical reactions. In classical radical reactions, alkenes should react also at the allylic position and give rise to allyl-substituted products, not exclusively epoxides methyl-substituted aromatics should react at the benzylic position. The products expected from such reactions are absent. Another argument was made against the radical mechanism based on the stereoselectivity of epoxidation. Radical intermediates are free to rotate around the C C bond, with the consequence that both cis- and /rani-epoxides are formed from a single alkene isomer, contrary to the evidence obtained with titanium silicates (Clerici et al., 1993). 

Allylation of organic halides. T wo laboratories2 have reported briefly that in the presence of a radical initiator organic halides undergo allylic substitution reactions with allyltrialkyltin compounds in moderate yield. This reaction was used in a recent Synthesis of the neurotoxin (+ )-perhydrohistrionicotoxin (7) to introduce the n-butyl tide chain.3 AI BN-catalyzed reaction of the bromide 2 with 1 proceeds in unexpectedly igh yield and with complete stereocontrol to give a single product 3. It is the tndesired isomer, but the desired stereochemistry is obtained by epimerization of the Intermediate ketone 5. The hydroxy lactam (6) had previously been used for the Synthesis of 7. 

Scheme 7.15] or S -type mechanism [Equation (7.9)]. Depending on the nature of the nucleophile and catalyst employed, the subsequent nucleophilic substitution of the metal can follow either via a-elimination [path A, Equations (7.8) and (7.9), Scheme 7.15], via an SN2 reaction (path B) or via an SN2 -type reaction (path C). For reasons of clarity, only strictly concerted and stereospecific SN2- or SN2 -anti-type mechanistic scenarios are shown in Scheme 7.15. The situation might, however, be complicated if, e.g., the initial S l -anti ionization event is competing with an Sn2 -syn reaction. Erosion in stereo- and regioselectivity can be the result of these competing reactions. Furthermore, fluxional intermediates such as 7t-allyl Fe complexes are not shown in Scheme 7.15 for reasons of clarity. These intermediates are known for a variety of late transition metal allyl complexes and will be referred to later. Moreover, apart from these ionic mechanisms, radicals might also be involved in the reaction. So far no distinct mechanistic study on allylic substitutions has been published.

Of special interest are also the reactions of allyl-substituted element-centered radicals. For instance, AIIBu2Gc and dibutyl(2-methylallyl)germyl radicals undergo disproportionation reactions leading to derivatives of tetra- and divalent germanium56. 

Unfortunately, substitution in the y-position, such as in crotyltin, led to poorly reactive allyltins, due to the decrease in the addition rate of the radicals to the double bond. It has been established that, generally, the competitive allylic hydrogen abstraction became predominant, destroying the crotyltin reagent548. The use of y-substituted allyltins for the photo-induced radical allylation of carbonyl compounds represents an interesting... 

Tandem Radical 5-exo Cyclization/Heck Reactions or Tandem Radical Cyclization/Allylic Substitution Reactions... 

A tandem radical 5-exo cyclization/radical addition/allylic substitution reaction was subsequently described [292]. Allylic ot-bromo acetal 242b cyclized cobalt-catalyzed. Addition to diene 245 and subsequent coupling with coformed organocobalt(I) species generates an allylcobalt complex, which undergoes reductive elimination to cyclic product 246 in 93% yield (cf. Fig. 56). 

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