Schmidt reaction of azides

Aube took advantage of an intramolecular Schmidt reaction of azide 129 to provide the fused ring heterocyclic lactam 130 as a key step in a total synthesis of (+)-aspidospermidine... 

Pearson, W. H., Walavalkar, R., Schkeryantz, J. M., Fang, W. K., Blickensdorf, J. D. Intramolecular Schmidt reactions of azides with carbocations synthesis of bridged-bicyclic and fused-bicyclic tertiary amines. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1993,115,10183-10194. 

A catalytic intramolecular Schmidt reaction of azide-tethered ketones... 

Intermolecular Schmidt reactions of alkyl azides and hydroxyalkyl azides with cycloketones in the presence of a Lewis acid, lead to formation of iV-alkyl lactams and A-hydroxyalkyl lactams respectively in good yield. The synthesis of chiral lactams by an asymmetric Schmidt reaction has also been reported. ... 

The Schmidt reaction of ketones works best with aliphatic and alicyclic ketones alkyl aryl ketones and diaryl ketones are considerably less reactive. The reaction is only seldom applied to aldehydes as starting materials. The hydrazoic acid used as reagent is usually prepared in situ by treatment of sodium azide with sulfuric acid. Hydrazoic acid is highly toxic, and can detonate upon contact with hot laboratory equipment. 

In an investigation of the intramolecular Schmidt reaction of alkyl azides for the synthesis of benzo-fused l-azabicyclo[m.n.O]alkanes, the perhydrobenzo[/]pyrrolo[l,2-a] azepine 29 was prepared in 72% yield . 

Of equal importance to the Beckmann rearrangement for the preparation of azepines and azepinones is the Schmidt reaction of ketones. Again, however, with unsymmetrically substituted cyclohexanones or with bicyclic ketones such as a-tetralone, two azepines are possible, a -Substituted cyclohexanones invariably yield the product of attack by azide ion at the least hindered side of the protonated ketone as exemplified in Scheme 19 (B-67MI51600). 

The Schmidt reaction of cyclic ketones with hydrazoic acid affords convenient access to ring-expanded N-unsub-stituted lactams but extension of this process to alkyl azides to provide Aralkyl lactams is capricious in nature. A protocol... 

Chloro-3-methoxycarbonyl-5,6-diphenylpyrazine refluxed with sodium methoxide gave 2-carboxy-3-methoxy-5,6-diphenylpyrazine (371) and the attempted Schmidt reaction of 2,5-dimethoxycarbonylpyrazine, in concentrated sulfuric acid with trichloroacetic acid at 60° with subsequent addition of sodium azide, gave 2,5-dicarboxypyrazine (1176). 2-Methoxy-3-methoxycarbonyl-5,6-diphenylpyrazine, when refluxed with cuprous chloride in dry dimethylformamide, gave 2-carboxy-3-methoxy-5,6-diphenylpyrazine (10%) 2-hydroxy-3-methoxycarbonyl-5,6-diphenyl-pyrazine similarly treated gave 5-hydroxy-2,3-diphenylpyrazine (30%) (837). 

The Schmidt reaction of diarylmethylcarbinols or 1,1-diarylethy-lenes and benzhydrols, or acid-catalysed decomposition of 1,1-diarylethyl azides or benzhydryl azides has received considerable attention, and reliable data are available. It was found that a Hammett relationship was followed in the migratory aptitudes of substituted aryl groups. For the Schmidt reaction of unsymmetrical 1,1-diarylethylenes, the Hammett relationship was " ... 

The Schmidt reaction of substituted fluorenols, 24 and the acid-catalysed decomposidon of the corresponding azides 25 have been studied extensively " . In pardcular. Arcus and Coombsfound that a substituent s electron-releasing ability markedly affected the product distribudon. When R was electron-withdrawing, the ring... 

Two reportshave appeared concerning an extension of the Schmidt reaction of aryl aUcyl ketones in which the ketone was treated with an alkyl azide to give benzaldehyde, an aliphatic aldehyde and an amine. The yields of benzaldehyde were claimed to range from... 

Treatment of phthalic acid (145) with sodium azide under acidic conditions has been reported" to give various products anthranilic acid (147) and a trace of o-phenylenediamine (148) in concentrated sulfuric acid and anthranilazide (149) and benzimidazol-2-one (150) in 90% sulfuric acid. Analogously, phthalic anhydride (146) gives the following products anthranilic acid (147), benzimidazol-2-one (150) and some 3,l-benzoxazine-2,4(l//)-dione (isatoic anhydride) (151) in sulfuric acid and benzimidazol-2-one (150) in acetic acid. A recent report" has revealed that Ae Schmidt reaction of phthalic acid (145) in 90-98% sulfuric acid gives anthranilic acid (147) and anthranilazide (149) (major products) by a process thought to involve 3,l-benzoxazine-2,4(l//)-dione (151) as an intermediate. Benzimidazol-2-one (150) is produced in this reaction by a secondary process from anthranilazide (149). Photolysis of (149) also produces (150). 

Mossman, C. J., Aube, J. Intramolecular Schmidt reactions of alkyl azides with ketals and enol ethers. Tetrahedron 1996, 52, 3403-3408. 

Under the conditions of the Schmidt reaction the azide group in (81) was captured intermolecularly by a carbocation, producing an aminodiazonium ion intermediate which subsequently rearranged yielding indolizidine 167B (82) <93JA10183>. 

Reaction with Cyclic Enones. Conjugate addition of azide ion to cyclic enones in water using sodium azide in the presence of Lewis base resulted in the formation of 8-azido carbonyl compounds (eq 55). The Schmidt reaction of benzopyranones with sodium azide led to pyrano[3,2-b]azepines in reasonable yields (eq 56). 

Scheme 4.7 Regiochemical possibilities for the Schmidt reaction of hydroxyallwl azides with ketones.

Scheme 4.11 Intramolecular Schmidt reactions of allq/1 azides under non acidic conditions.

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