Sodium aluminum hydride esters

Esters are also reduced by sodium aluminum hydride (yields 95-97%) [<9<9] and by lithium trimethoxyaluminum hydride (2 mol per mol of the ester) [94] but not by lithium tris tert-butoxy)aluminum hydride [96], Another complex hydride, sodium bis(2-methoxyethoxy)aluminum hydride, reduces esters in benzene or toluene solutions (1.1 -1.2 mol per ester group) at 80° in 15-90 minutes in 66-98% yields [969], Magnesium aluminum hydride (in the form of its tetrakistetrahydrofuranate) reduced methyl benzoate to benzyl alcohol in 58% yield on refluxing for 2 hours in tetrahydrofuran [59]. 

The challenge of this reaction is to reduce the Weinreb amide to the aldehyde while simultaneously reducing the methyl ester to the primary allylic alcohol. Different reagents were tested, but only an excess of sodium aluminum hydride delivered the desired product 13. The substrate was either inert or degraded if LiAlH4 or DIBAL were used. NaBH4 in methanol selectively reduced only the amide, but to form the primary alcohol. Because of its instability, hydroxyaldehyde 13 was not purified but directly subjected to the next reaction. 

Aldehydes. The reduction of carboxylic acid derivatives such as esters and nitriles is stopped at the aldehyde stage with the modified sodium aluminum hydride. The reagent is prepared from NaAlH2Et2 and piperidine in THF-toluene at 0°C. Interestingly, acid chlorides can be converted to aldehydes by treatment with piperidine and then with NaAlH2Et2- ... 

Lithium borohydride is a more powerful reducing agent than sodium borohydride, but not as powerful as lithium aluminum hydride (Table 6). In contrast to sodium borohydride, the lithium salt, ia general, reduces esters to the corresponding primary alcohol ia refluxing ethers. An equimolar mixture of sodium or potassium borohydride and a lithium haUde can also be used for this purpose (21,22). 

An aiyl methane- or toluenesulfonate ester is stable to reduction with lithium aluminum hydride, to the acidic conditions used for nitration of an aromatic ring (HNO3/HOAC), and to the high temperatures (200-250°) of an Ullman reaction. Aiyl sulfonate esters, formed by reaction of a phenol with a sulfonyl chloride in pyridine or aqueous sodium hydroxide, are cleaved by warming in aqueous sodium hydroxide. ... 

Esters of aromatic acids are not reduced by this procedure, so an aromatic COOH group can be reduced in the presence of a COOR group. However, it is also possible to reduce aromatic ester groups, by a variation of the trichlorosilane procedure. The o- and p-hydroxybenzoic acids and their esters have been reduced to cresols (HOC6H4CH3) with sodium bis(2-methoxyethoxy)aluminum hydride, NaAlH2(0C2H40Me)2 Red-Al). ... 

The importance of reactions with complex, metal hydrides in carbohydrate chemistry is well documented by a vast number of publications that deal mainly with reduction of carbonyl groups, N- and O-acyl functions, lactones, azides, and epoxides, as well as with reactions of sulfonic esters. With rare exceptions, lithium aluminum hydride and lithium, sodium, or potassium borohydride are the... 

The stereoselective total synthesis of both ( )-corynantheidine (61) (170,171) (alio stereoisomer) and ( )-dihydrocorynantheine (172) (normal stereoisomer) has been elaborated by Szdntay and co-workers. The key intermediate leading to both alkaloids was the alio cyanoacetic ester derivative 315, which was obtained from the previously prepared ketone 312 (173) by the Knoevenagel condensation accompanied by complete epimerization at C-20 and by subsequent stereoselective sodium borohydride reduction. ( )-Corynantheidine was prepared by modification of the cyanoacetate side chain esterification furnished diester 316, which underwent selective lithium aluminum hydride reduction. The resulting sodium enolate of the a-formyl ester was finally methylated to racemic corynantheidine (171). 

Hydroxy-containing fluorovinyl ether monomers (5,6) were prepared in excellent yields (80-90%) in a single step from the corresponding esters (1,3)12"14 with sodium borohydride in absolute ethanol. Protection of the sensitive vinyl ether groups was not required during the reduction. In contrast, the use of a more powerful reducing agent, such as lithium aluminum hydride, resulted in the reduction of the double bond ... 

Countless reductions of esters to alcohols have been accomplished using lithium aluminum hydride. One half of a mol of this hydride is needed for reduction of 1 mol of the ester. Ester or its solution in ether is added to a solution of lithium aluminum hydride in ether. The heat of reaction brings the mixture to boiling. The reaction mixture is decomposed by ice-water and acidified with mineral acid to dissolve lithium and aluminum salts. Less frequently sodium hydroxide is used for this purpose. Yields of alcohols are frequently quantitative [83,1059]. Lactones afford glycols (diols) [575]. 

Other reagents used for reduction are boranes and complex borohydrides. Lithium borohydride whose reducing power lies between that of lithium aluminum hydride and that of sodium borohydride reacts with esters sluggishly and requires refluxing for several hours in ether or tetrahydrofuran (in which it is more soluble) [750]. The reduction of esters with lithium borohydride is strongly catalyzed by boranes such as B-methoxy-9-bora-bicyclo[3.3.1]nonane and some other complex lithium borohydrides such as lithium triethylborohydride and lithium 9-borabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane. Addition of 10mol% of such hydrides shortens the time necessary for complete reduction of esters in ether or tetrahydrofuran from 8 hours to 0.5-1 hour [1060],... 

Much more conveniently, even a,)S-unsaturated esters can he transformed into a,)S-unsaturated alcohols by very careful treatment with lithium aluminum hydride [1073], sodium bis(2-methoxyethoxy)aluminum hydride [544] or diiso-butylalane [1151] (Procedure 18, p. 208). An excess of the reducing agent must be avoided. Therefore the inverse technique (addition of the hydride to the ester) is used and the reaction is usually carried out at low temperature. In hydrocarbons as solvents the reduction does not proceed further even at elevated temperatures. Methyl cinnamate was converted to cinnamyl alcohol in 73% yield when an equimolar amount of the ester was added to a suspension of lithium aluminum hydride in benzene and the mixture was heated at 59-60° for 14.5 hours [1073]. Ethyl cinnamate gave 75.5% yield of cinnamyl alcohol on inverse treatment with 1.1 mol of sodium bis(2-methoxy-ethoxy)aluminum hydride at 15-20° for 45 minutes [544]. 

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