Reactions with carbonyl compounds mechanism

There have been few mechanistic studies of Lewis acid-catalyzed cycloaddition reactions with carbonyl compounds. Danishefsky et ah, for example, concluded that the reaction of benzaldehyde 1 with trans-l-methoxy-3-(trimethylsilyloxy)-l,3-di-methyl-1,3-butadiene (Danishefsky s diene) 2 in the presence of BF3 as the catalyst proceeds via a stepwise mechanism, whereas a concerted reaction occurs when ZnCl2 or lanthanides are used as catalysts (Scheme 4.3) [7]. The evidence of a change in the diastereochemistry of the reaction is that trans-3 is the major cycloaddition product in the Bp3-catalyzed reaction, whereas cis-3 is the major product in, for example, the ZnCl2-catalyzed reaction - the latter resulting from exo addition (Scheme 4.3). 

Current results indicate that stabilized arsonium ylides such as phenacylide, carbomethoxymethylide, cyanomethylide, fluorenylide, and cyclopentadienylide afford only olefinic products upon reaction with carbonyl compounds. Nonstabilized ylides such as ethylide afford almost exclusively epoxides or rearranged products thereof. However, semi-stabilized arsonium ylides, such as the benzylides, afford approximately equimolar amounts of olefin and epoxide. Obviously, the nature of the carbanion moiety of the arsonium ylide greatly affects the course of the reaction. It is reasonable to suppose that a two-step mechanism is involved in the reaction of heteronium (P, S, and As) ylides with carbonyl compounds (56). 

The majority of main group organometallic compounds for which SET mechanisms were postulated involves Grignard reagents [13,69-75] in their reactions with carbonyl compounds. Even the formation of these important laboratory reagents RMgHal (which does not fall within the scope of this article) is now believed to involve electron transfer mechanisms and radical formation at the surface of metallic Mg [76,77]. In contrast to Grignard compounds with their... 

Biphilic Reactions with Carbonyl Compounds.—The dichlorophosphine (34) undergoes a standard chloromethylation when heated with paraformaldehyde, and a good yield of the phosphinic chloride (37) is obtained. At temperatures below 100 °C, the ester (38) is isolated, and the authors discuss, somewhat speculatively, the mechanism of the reaction see Scheme 3. 

The Basic Mechanisms of Cycloaddition Reactions of Carbonyl Compounds with Conjugated Dienes... 

Chiral salen chromium and cobalt complexes have been shown by Jacobsen et al. to catalyze an enantioselective cycloaddition reaction of carbonyl compounds with dienes [22]. The cycloaddition reaction of different aldehydes 1 containing aromatic, aliphatic, and conjugated substituents with Danishefsky s diene 2a catalyzed by the chiral salen-chromium(III) complexes 14a,b proceeds in up to 98% yield and with moderate to high ee (Scheme 4.14). It was found that the presence of oven-dried powdered 4 A molecular sieves led to increased yield and enantioselectivity. The lowest ee (62% ee, catalyst 14b) was obtained for hexanal and the highest (93% ee, catalyst 14a) was obtained for cyclohexyl aldehyde. The mechanism of the cycloaddition reaction was investigated in terms of a traditional cycloaddition, or formation of the cycloaddition product via a Mukaiyama aldol-reaction path. In the presence of the chiral salen-chromium(III) catalyst system NMR spectroscopy of the crude reaction mixture of the reaction of benzaldehyde with Danishefsky s diene revealed the exclusive presence of the cycloaddition-pathway product. The Mukaiyama aldol condensation product was prepared independently and subjected to the conditions of the chiral salen-chromium(III)-catalyzed reactions. No detectable cycloaddition product could be observed. These results point towards a [2-i-4]-cydoaddition mechanism. 

The major developments of catalytic enantioselective cycloaddition reactions of carbonyl compounds with conjugated dienes have been presented. A variety of chiral catalysts is available for the different types of carbonyl compound. For unactivated aldehydes chiral catalysts such as BINOL-aluminum(III), BINOL-tita-nium(IV), acyloxylborane(III), and tridentate Schiff base chromium(III) complexes can catalyze highly diastereo- and enantioselective cycloaddition reactions. The mechanism of these reactions can be a stepwise pathway via a Mukaiyama aldol intermediate or a concerted mechanism. For a-dicarbonyl compounds, which can coordinate to the chiral catalyst in a bidentate fashion, the chiral BOX-copper(II)... 

The mechanism for the hetero-Diels-Alder reaction of benzaldehyde 9 with the very reactive diene, Danishefsky s diene 10, catalyzed by aluminum complexes has been investigated from a theoretical point of view using semi-empirical calculations [27]. The focus in this investigation was to address the question if the reaction proceeds directly to the hetero-Diels-Alder adduct 11, or if 11 is formed via a Mukaiyama aldol intermediate (Scheme 8.4) (see the chapter dealing with hetero-Diels-Alder reactions of carbonyl compounds). 

Ab initio molecular orbital calculations are being used to study the reactions of anionic nucleophiles with carbonyl compounds in the gas phase. A rich variety of energy surfaces is found as shown here for reactions of hydroxide ion with methyl formate and formaldehyde, chloride ion with formyl and acetyl chloride, and fluoride ion with formyl fluoride. Extension of these investigations to determine the influence of solvation on the energy profiles is also underway the statistical mechanics approach is outlined and illustrated by results from Monte Carlo simulations for the addition of hydroxide ion to formaldehyde in water. 

The mechanism of the Zn chloride-assisted, palladium-catalyzed reaction of allyl acetate (456) with carbonyl compounds (457) has been proposed [434]. The reaction involves electroreduction of a Pd(II) complex to a Pd(0) complex, oxidative addition of the allyl acetate to the Pd(0) complex, and Zn(II)/Pd(II) transmetallation leading to an allylzinc reagent, which would react with (457) to give homoallyl alcohols (458) and (459) (Scheme 157). Substituted -lactones are electrosynthesized by the Reformatsky reaction of ketones and ethyl a-bromobutyrate, using a sacrificial Zn anode in 35 92% yield [542]. The effect of cathode materials involving Zn, C, Pt, Ni, and so on, has been investigated for the electrochemical allylation of acetone [543]. 

The maleimide group can undergo a variety of chemical reactions. The reactivity of the double bond is a consequence of the electron withdrawing nature of the two adjacent carbonyl groups which create a very electron-deficient double bond, and therefore is susceptible to homo- and copolymerizations. Such polymerizations may be induced by free radicals or anions. Nucleophiles such as primary and secondary amines, phenates, thiophenates, carboxylates, etc. may react via the classical Michael addition mechanism. The maleimide group furthermore is a very reactive dienophile and can therefore be employed in a variety of Diels Alder reactions. Bisdienes such as divinylbenzene, bis(vinylbenzyl) compounds, bis(propenylphenoxy) compounds and bis(benzocyclobutenes) are very attractive Diels Alder comonomers and therefore some are used as constituents for BMI resin formulations. An important chemical reaction of the maleimide group is the ENE reaction with allylphenyl compounds. The most attractive comonomer of this family is DABA particularly when tough bismaleimide resins are desired. 

This mechanism, reaction of sulfur tetrafluoride with carbonyl compounds, is also supported by rearrangements observed on reaction with aliphatic aldehydes.38... 

Unlike amidines, the multicomponent reaction of a,(3-unsaturated ketones 96 (aliphatic [94] or aromatic [95, 96]) with carbonyl compounds 97 and ammonia, which are the synthetic precursors of amidines, yielded 1,2,5,6-tetrahydropyrimidines 98 instead of dihydroheterocycles. When R3 is not the same as R4 tetrahydropyrimidines 98 were mixtures of diastereomers A and B, in which the relative configurations of stereogenic centers were also established [95, 96]. In contrast to conventional mechanical shaking requiring about 48 h [95], sonicated reactions were completed within 90 min at room temperature and provided the target heterocycles in high yields and purities [96]. Ultrasonic irradiation also significantly expanded the possibilities of such three-component reactions (Scheme 3.29). 

The reaction of carbonyl compounds with secondary amines cannot give imines as there is no NH proton to be lost in the final step of the mechanism. However, there is another way in which the positive charge on the nitrogen can be neutralised. It involves loss of a proton from a neighbouring carbon atom (Following fig.). Water acts as a base to remove the proton and the electrons that make up the C-H o bond are used to form a new n bond to the neighbouring carbon. 

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