Aromatic Radical Substitution Reactions

Aromatic nitro compounds undergo nucleophilic aromatic substitutions with various nucleophiles. In 1991 Terrier s book covered (1) SNAr reactions, mechanistic aspects (2) structure and reactivity of anionic o-complexes (3) synthetic aspects of intermolecular SNAr substitutions (4) intramolecular SNAr reactions (5) vicarious nucleophilic substitutions of hydrogen (VNS) (6) nucleophilic aromatic photo-substitutions and (7) radical nucleophilic aromatic substitutions. This chapter describes the recent development in synthetic application of SNAr and especially VNS. The environmentally friendly chemical processes are highly required in modem chemical industry. VNS reaction is an ideal process to introduce functional groups into aromatic rings because hydrogen can be substituted by nucleophiles without the need of metal catalysts. 

In the original process using tin amides, transmetallation formed the amido intermediate. However, this synthetic method is outdated and the transfer of amides from tin to palladium will not be discussed. In the tin-free processes, reaction of palladium aryl halide complexes with amine and base generates palladium amide intermediates. One pathway for generation of the amido complex from amine and base would be reaction of the metal complex with the small concentration of amide that is present in the reaction mixtures. This pathway seems unlikely considering the two directly observed alternative pathways discussed below and the absence of benzyne and radical nucleophilic aromatic substitution products that would be generated from the reaction of alkali amide with aryl halides. 

In addition to the SNAr mechanism, several other mechanisms are known for nucleophilic aromatic substitutions. For example, an SnI mechanism is relevant for nucleophilic substitution reactions which encounter aromatic diazonium salts. Radical-nucleophilic aromatic substitutions (SrnI) are known in reactions where no electron-withdrawing group is available, whereas a mechanism via a benzyne intermediate is of relevance for substitutions employing NHJ as a nucleophile. 

The S,jAr reaction is circumscribed by the major mechanisms of nucleophilic aromatic substitution the most common S, Ar addition-ehmination (Chapter 6), the oxidative nucleophilic aromatic substitution of hydrogen (ONSH Chapter 11), the benzyne mechanism (Chapter 12), and the radical-nucleophilic aromatic substitution Sj j l (Chapter 10). The chiral inductor can be bonded (Section 8.2) or nonbonded to the reactants (Section 8.3) (Scheme 8.1). 

Since its discovery from Bunnett in 1970 [1], the radical-nucleophilic aromatic substitution, iinimo-lecular (the reaction), has been widely used to achieve new C—C or C-heteroatom bonds. In these reactions, a compound bearing an adequate leaving group is substituted at the ipso position by a nucleophile (Nu"), and this process involves electron transfer (ET) steps. The global reaction is depicted in Equation 10.1 ... 

Leardini and Spagnolo have investigated the generation of iminyl radicals from azides via hydrogen atom transfer in the presence of tin hydride. Depending on the nature of the iminyl radicals, homolytic aromatic substitution was observed as well as conversion to the corresponding nitrile (Scheme 8.50, top). j8-Fragmentation of carbamoyl radicals has been observed as major reaction pathway with a-azidoamides (Scheme 8.50, bottom). 

Almost quantitative radical nucleophilic aromatic substitution reactions were reported by Corsico and Rossi from the reaction of nucleophile trimethylstannyl ions with mono-, di- and trichloro-substituted aromatic substrates in Hquid ammonia.The chain process shown in Scheme 9 requires an initiation step, and it can be either Hght induced or be a spontaneous electron transfer from the nucleophile to the aromatic substrate. 

The free radical mechanism is confirmed by the fact that if a substituted aromatic hydrocarbon is used in this reaction, the incoming group (derived from the diazotate) may not necessarily occupy the position in the benzene ring normally determined by the substituent present—a characteristic of free radical reactions. 

As is broadly true for aromatic compounds, the a- or benzylic position of alkyl substituents exhibits special reactivity. This includes susceptibility to radical reactions, because of the. stabilization provided the radical intermediates. In indole derivatives, the reactivity of a-substituents towards nucleophilic substitution is greatly enhanced by participation of the indole nitrogen. This effect is strongest at C3, but is also present at C2 and to some extent in the carbocyclic ring. The effect is enhanced by N-deprotonation. 

The first three chapters discuss fundamental bonding theory, stereochemistry, and conformation, respectively. Chapter 4 discusses the means of study and description of reaction mechanisms. Chapter 9 focuses on aromaticity and aromatic stabilization and can be used at an earlier stage of a course if an instructor desires to do so. The other chapters discuss specific mechanistic types, including nucleophilic substitution, polar additions and eliminations, carbon acids and enolates, carbonyl chemistry, aromatic substitution, concerted reactions, free-radical reactions, and photochemistry. 

The reactivity of pyridine relative to that of benzene has been measured using the competitive technique developed by Ingold and his schoool for corresponding studies of electrophilic aromatic substitution. The validity of the method applied to free-radical reactions has been discussed. Three sources of the phenyl radical have been used the results obtained are set out in Table II. 

The competitive method employed for determining relative rates of substitution in homolytic phenylation cannot be applied for methylation because of the high reactivity of the primary reaction products toward free methyl radicals. Szwarc and his co-workers, however, developed a technique for measuring the relative rates of addition of methyl radicals to aromatic and heteroaromatic systems. - In the decomposition of acetyl peroxide in isooctane the most important reaction is the formation of methane by the abstraction of hydrogen atoms from the solvent by methyl radicals. When an aromatic compound is added to this system it competes with the solvent for methyl radicals, Eqs, (28) and (29). Reaction (28) results in a decrease in the amount... 

A second theoretical index, and one for which there appears to be more justification in its application to free-radical reactions, is the atom localization energy. This index is a measure of the energy required to localize one electron of the 7r-electron system in the aromatic molecule at the point of attack of the radical. The formation of the intermediate adduct in a free-radical aromatic substitution may be regarded as the sum of two processes one, the localization of an electron at the point of attack and the other, the pairing of this... 

The reactions of the radicals (whether primary, secondary, solvent-derived, etc.) with monomer may not be entirely regio- or ehemoseleetive. Reactions, such as head addition, abstraction or aromatic substitution, often compete with tail... 

For reactions with S, specificity is found to decrease in the series cyanoisopropyl mcthyl Fbutoxy>phcnyl>bcnzoyloxy. Cyanoisopropyl (Scheme 3.3),7 f-bntoxy and methyl radicals give exclusively tail addition. Phenyl radicals afford tail addition and ca l% aromatic substitution. Benzoyloxy radicals give tail addition, head addition, and aromatic substitution (Scheme 3.4). ... 

Radicals can be classified according to their tendency to give aromatic substitution, abstraction, double bond addition, or (3-scission and further classified in terms of the specificity of these reactions (see 3.4). With this knowledge, it should be possible to choose an initiator according to its suitability for use with a given monomer or monomer system so as to avoid the formation of undesirable end groups or, alternatively, to achieve a desired functionality. 

Isopropoxycarbonyloxy radicals undergo facile reaction with aromatic substrates (e.g. toluene) by reversible aromatic substitution. 94 Isopropoxycarbonyloxy radicals react with S to give ring substitution (ca 1%) as well as the expected double bond addition.40 ... 

Grant et a/.397 examined the reactions of hydroxy radicals with a range of vinyl and a-methylvinyl monomers in organic media. Hydroxy radicals on reaction with AMS give significant yields of products from head addition, abstraction and aromatic substitution (Table 3.8) even though resonance and steric factors combine to favor "normal tail addition. However, it is notable that the extents of abstraction (with AMS and MMA) arc less than obtained with t-butoxy radicals and the amounts of head addition (with MMA and S) are no greater than those seen with benzoyloxy radicals under similar conditions. It is clear that there is no direct correlation between reaclion rale and low specificity. 

Mechanistically there is ample evidence that the Balz-Schiemann reaction is heterolytic. This is shown by arylation trapping experiments. The added arene substrates are found to be arylated in isomer ratios which are typical for an electrophilic aromatic substitution by the aryl cation and not for a homolytic substitution by the aryl radical (Makarova et al., 1958). Swain and Rogers (1975) showed that the reaction takes place in the ion pair with the tetrafluoroborate, and not, as one might imagine, with a fluoride ion originating from the dissociation of the tetrafluoroborate into boron trifluoride and fluoride ions. This is demonstrated by the insensitivity of the ratio of products ArF/ArCl in methylene chloride solution at 25 °C to excess BF3 concentration. 

Homolytic aromatic substitution often requires high temperatures, high concentrations of initiator, long reaction times and typically occurs in moderate yields.Such reactions are often conducted under reducing conditions with (TMSlsSiH, even though the reactions are not reductions and often finish with oxidative rearomatization. Reaction (68) shows an example where a solution containing silane (2 equiv) and AIBN (2 equiv) is slowly added (8h) in heated pyridine containing 2-bromopyridine (1 equiv) The synthesis of 2,3 -bipyridine 75 presumably occurs via the formation of cyclohexadienyl radicals 74 and its rearomatization by disproportionation with the alkyl radical from AIBN. ... 

In Part 2 of this book, we shall be directly concerned with organic reactions and their mechanisms. The reactions have been classified into 10 chapters, based primarily on reaction type substitutions, additions to multiple bonds, eliminations, rearrangements, and oxidation-reduction reactions. Five chapters are devoted to substitutions these are classified on the basis of mechanism as well as substrate. Chapters 10 and 13 include nucleophilic substitutions at aliphatic and aromatic substrates, respectively, Chapters 12 and 11 deal with electrophilic substitutions at aliphatic and aromatic substrates, respectively. All free-radical substitutions are discussed in Chapter 14. Additions to multiple bonds are classified not according to mechanism, but according to the type of multiple bond. Additions to carbon-carbon multiple bonds are dealt with in Chapter 15 additions to other multiple bonds in Chapter 16. One chapter is devoted to each of the three remaining reaction types Chapter 17, eliminations Chapter 18, rearrangements Chapter 19, oxidation-reduction reactions. This last chapter covers only those oxidation-reduction reactions that could not be conveniently treated in any of the other categories (except for oxidative eliminations). 

Some of the reactions in this chapter operate by still other mechanisms, among them an addition-elimination mechanism (see 13-15). A new mechanism has been reported in aromatic chemistry, a reductively activated polar nucleophilic aromatic substitution. The reaction of phenoxide with p-dinitrobenzene in DMF shows radical features that cannot be attributed to a radical anion, and it is not Srn2. The new designation was proposed to account for these results. 

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