Sodium hydride, enolate anion formation with

The formation of the above anions ("enolate type) depend on equilibria between the carbon compounds, the base, and the solvent. To ensure a substantial concentration of the anionic synthons in solution the pA" of both the conjugated acid of the base and of the solvent must be higher than the pAT -value of the carbon compound. Alkali hydroxides in water (p/T, 16), alkoxides in the corresponding alcohols (pAT, 20), sodium amide in liquid ammonia (pATj 35), dimsyl sodium in dimethyl sulfoxide (pAT, = 35), sodium hydride, lithium amides, or lithium alkyls in ether or hydrocarbon solvents (pAT, > 40) are common combinations used in synthesis. Sometimes the bases (e.g. methoxides, amides, lithium alkyls) react as nucleophiles, in other words they do not abstract a proton, but their anion undergoes addition and substitution reactions with the carbon compound. If such is the case, sterically hindered bases are employed. A few examples are given below (H.O. House, 1972 I. Kuwajima, 1976). 

When the carbonyl compound is added to this base, abstraction of a proton and formation of the enolate anion follow, as seen with sodinm hydride or sodium amide above. Again, this reaction is essentially irreversible because the other product is the weak base diisopropylamine (pATa 36). So far, there does not seem any particular advantage in nsing LDA rather than sodium hydride or sodium amide. 

The substrate arachidonic aeid, whieh often leads to formation of inflammatory prostaglandins, is stored in tissues as one of a number of phospholipids these compounds, as the name indicates, comprise complex phosphate-containing esters. The antiinflammatory corticosteroids inhibit the action of the enzyme, phospholipase A2, that frees arachidonic acid. The many undesired effects of those steroids has led to the search for non-steroidal inhibitors of that enzyme. A highly substituted indole derivative has shown good activity as a phospholipase A2 inhibitor. Alkylation of the anion from treatment of indole (32) with benzyl chloride affords the corresponding A-benzylated derivative (33). The methyl ether at the 4 position is then cleaved by means of boron tribromide to yield 34. Alkylation of the enolate from reaction of the phenol with sodium hydride with tert-butylbromoacetate affords the corresponding... 

For acylations with reactive esters, such as formate or oxalate (see Section 3.6.4.5), sodium alkoxides are still the bases of choice, but sodium hydride, dimsyl sodium, sodium or potassium amide or sodium metal have all been used for the in situ generation of the enolate anion. A typical example is shown in Scheme 47. Acylation by esters results in the production of 1 equiv. of the alkoxide ion, along with the p-dicarbonyl compound proton transfer then results in the production of the conjugate base of the dicarbonyl compound. This process normally leads to the more stable anion in the acylation of an unsymme-trical ketone. The acyl group thus becomes attached to the less-substituted a-position of the ketone. The less stable 0-acylated products are normally not observed in such reversible base-catalyzed reactions. Methyl alkyl ketones are normally acylated on the methyl group where both a-carbons are substituted to the same extent, acylation occurs at the less-hindered site. Acylation is observed only rarely at a methine carbon as the more stable p-diketone enolate cannot be formed. 

When the preparation of alkali metal enolates derived from alkanoylphosphonates was attempted by treatment with strong anhydrous bases such as lithium diisopropylamide or sodium hydride, the formation of phosphate phosphonate-type products was observed. This was interpreted in terms of fragmentation of the enolate formed in the first step to ketene and dialkyl phosphite anion (equation 75), and addition of the latter to the carbonyl group of an unreacted acylphosphonate molecules to form a bisphosphonate. Such molecules are known to rearrange to phosphate phosphonates ... 

Alkylations. Many bases which are weaker than t-BuOK are capable of essentially quantitative conversion of active methylene compounds into the corresponding enolates or other anions. However, the alkylation of diethyl malonate with a bicyclic secondary tosylate (eq 1) and the alkylation of ethyl n-butylaceto-acetate with -BuI (eq 2f provide examples of cases where the use of f-BuOK in f-BuOH is very effective. In the latter reaction, cleavage of the product via a retro-Claisen reaction is minimized with the sterically hindered base and yields obtained are higher than when Sodium Ethoxide or EtOK in EtOH, Sodium in diox-ane or toluene, or Sodium Hydride in toluene are used for the enolate formation. 

The reaction of diethyl malonate (90) with sodium hydride generates enolate anion 91 as the conjugate base, and hydrogen gas is the conjugate acid. It has the three resonance contributors shown in the illustration, although 91A has the highest concentration of electron density, and 91 will react as a carbanion nucleophile. There is one extra resonance form in the malonate enolate anion relative to a simple ester due to the second carbonyl unit, and it means that 91 is more stable than the enolate derived from a monoester. In part, this accounts for the enhanced acidity and easier formation of the enolate anion using a weaker base. Once formed, 91 is a carbon nucleophile and it will react with both aldehydes and ketones, as well as with other esters. 

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