Schmidt reactions alkyl azides

In recent years the applicability of the Schmidt reaction for the synthesis of more complex molecules—especially the variant employing alkyl azides—has been further investigated. Cycloketones bearing an azidoalkyl side-chain at the a-carbon center have been shown to undergo, upon treatment with trifluoroacetic... 

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. 

With alkyl aryl ketones, it is the aryl group that generally migrates to the nitrogen, except when the alkyl group is bulky. The reaction has been applied to a few aldehydes, but rarely. With aldehydes the product is usually the nitrile (16-21). Even with ketones, conversion to the nitrile is often a side reaction, especially with the type of ketone that gives 17-31. A useful variation of the Schmidt reaction treats a cyclic ketone with an alkyl azide (RN3) in the presence of TiCU, generating a... 

In addition to the Beckmann reaction, the Schmidt rearrangement is used to generate M-alkylated lactams, too. Alkyl azides 231 react with the cyclic ketones (and aldehydes) in the presence of proton or Lewis acids. On running the inter-molecular reactions, in most cases symmetric ketals 230 have been converted... 

Both inter- and intramolecular variants of the Schmidt reaction in which an alkyl azide effects overall insertion have been observed. 

Nitrilium salts, e.g., 66, prepared from the alkylation of nitriles, react with sodium azide to yield 1,5-disubstituted tetrazoles, e.g., 67 (Scheme 7).121 The Schmidt reaction,122 a versatile method for the preparation of 1,5-disubstituted tetrazoles from ketones and hydrazoic acid, can now be regarded as a special case of azide addition to nitrilium salts.123... 

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 . 

Alkyl azides have been involved in the synthesis of indolizidinone derivatives in several ways. One example (Scheme 7) is the intramolecular Schmidt reaction between alkyl azides and ketones which can be used to transform azidoketone 24 into the corresponding indolizidinones 26 through intermediate 25 <2001JOC886> or with epoxides to obtain the indolizidine 27 <2004JOC3093>. 

Anomalous ring expansions occur with 2-alkoxynaphtho-l,4-quinones, e.g. (202 R] = Me, R2 = H), in that attack by azide ion takes place at the more hindered carbonyl function (i.e. C-l) to give the l//-l-benzazepine-2,5-dione (203 R OH, R2 = R3 = H). In contrast, the 6-methoxy derivatives (202 R1 = alkyl R2 = MeO) suffer attack at the 4-carbonyl group to yield benzazepinedione (203 R1 = H, R2 = OMe, R3 = OH) (74CJC610). These results have led the authors to conclude that electronic as well as steric factors are important in the Schmidt reaction in determining the direction of ring expansion. 

Aube and co-workers have found that enolizable ketones react with benzyl azide in triflic acid to yield /V-(phenylamino)-methylated products [Eq. (5.354)]. The transformation is an aza-Mannich reaction interpreted with the involvement of the Mannich reagent A -phenyl iminium ion 295 formed in situ in a Schmidt rearrangement. Cyclic tertiary alcohols react with alkyl azides in triflic acid to yield N-alkylamines (296, 297)983 [Eq. (5.355)]. The Schmidt rearrangement was used to transform Merrifield resin into amino-polystyrene resin by reacting the azido derivative in excess triflic acid (CH2CI2, 0°C).984... 

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... 

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... 

Many attempts have been made to carry out the Schmidt reaction with alkyl or aryl azides in place of hydrazoic acid in the presence or absence of catalysing acids and either in the cold or on heating. Most have been fruitless although a few apparently valid claims are recorded. One is that treatment of acetophenone with methyl azide led to a trace of acetanilide and since the reagent was strictly free of hydrazoic acid and was not hydrolysed or otherwise split under the reaction conditions some demetliylation must have occurred at... 

Although the rearrangement of alkyl and aryl azides on treatment with acids, reaction (39), was discovered by Curtius , it is sometimes called a Schmidt reaction, although Schmidt did not work with these... 

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

A tandem reaction sequence involving electrocyclization, azide capture, and Schmidt rearrangement is observed when certain cross-conjugated dienones and alkyl azides are treated with BE3 OEt2. ... 

Reaction of RN, with ketones.2 TiCl4 (2.5 equiv.) can effect a Schmidt type reaction of alkyl azides with cyclic ketones to afford N-alkyllactams. An aldol-typc reaction can also occur bul can be suppressed by use of excess (2 equiv.) of the alkyl azide. Highest yields are obtained with cyclohcxancs, but ring expansion products can be obtained in 20-25% yield from cyclopcntanonc and cyclobutanoncs. 

Schmidt reaction. Nascent carbocations generated from alcohols (using TfOH or SnCl ) are trapped by the added alkyl azides. ... 

About 15 years ago, Aube et al. reported that alkyl azides undergo Lewis acid-mediated reactions with ketones 76 to give the corresponding lactams 78 via 77 (Azido-Schmidt reaction Scheme 14A) [44-48]. However, this reaction pathway does not proceed when a,/3-unsaturated ketones are used. It was recently shown that Lewis acid-activated enones like 79 undergo a [3-P2] cycloaddition with alkylazides, likely via an 1,2,3-triazoline intermediate 80, to give the corresponding enaminone 80 (Scheme 14B) [49]. 

CHAPTER 4 ALKYL AND ACYL AZIDE REARRANGEMENTS Scheme 4.1 Schmidt reaction. 

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