Sommelet-reaction

Transformation of benzyl halides to the corresponding benzaldehydes with the aide of hexamethylenetetramine. 

The hydride transfer and the ring-opening of hexamethylenetetramine may occur in a synchronized fashion  

Sommelet, M. Compt. Rend. 1913, 157, 852. Marcel Sommelet (1877-1952) was bom in Langes, France. He received his Ph.D. in 1906 at Paris where he joined the Faculte de Pharmacie after WWI and became the chair of organic chemistry in 1934. Le Henaff, P. Annals Chim. Phys. 1962, 367. 

Name Reactions, 4th ed., DOI 10.1007/978-3-642-01053-8 239, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2009 

Sommelet reaction, hi Name Reactions for Functional Group Transformations-, Li, J. J., Corey, E. J., Eds. John Wiley Sons Hoboken, NJ, 2007, pp 689-695. (Review). 

Name Reactions A Collection of Detailed Mechanisms and Synthetic Applications, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-03979-4 256, Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2014 

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The process whereby aldehydes are produced from arylmethyl (also alkyl and other) halides by the action of hexamine is known as the Sommelet reaction. The reaction is essentially the conversion of an amine into an aldehyde the hexamine serves the dual role of converting the halide into the amine and the amine into the aldehyde, but its function is different in the two steps. When starting from a halide, the reaction proceeds in three stages —... 

It has been suggested that the Sommelet reaction proceeds by a hydride ion transfer, the acceptor being the conjugate acid of a Schiff base ... 

P-Naphthaldehyde. This preparation illustrates the use of -bromo-succinimide (Section VI.26) in the conversion of the readily available P-methylnaphthalene into 2-bromomethylnaphthalene and of the latter into p-naphthaldehyde by the Sommelet reaction. 

Chapter IV. a-Chloromethylnaphthalene (IV,23) benzylamine (Gabriel synthesis) (IV,39) i r.N -dialkylanilines (from amines and trialkyl orthophosphates) (IV,42) a-naphthaldehyde (Sommelet reaction) (IV,120) a-phenyl-cinnamic acid (Perkin reaction using triethylamine) (IV,124) p-nitrostyrene (IV,129) p-bromonaphthalene and p naphthoic acid (from 2 naphthylamine-1 -sulphonic acid) (IV,62 and IV,164) diphenic acid (from phenanthrene) (IV,165). 

Pinacol-pinacolone rearrangement Prileschajew epoxidation reaction Reformataky reaction Reimer-Tiemanii reaction Rosenmund reduction Sandmeyer reaction Schiemaim reaction Schmidt reaction or rearrangement Schotten-Baumann reaction Skraup reaction Sommelet reaction. ... 

Campaigne et al. have used 3-thenyl bromide obtained by benzoyl peroxide-catalyzed, side-chain bromination of 3-methylthiophene with A -bromosuccinimide, as a starting material for 3-substituted thiophenes. - 22 3-Methylthiophene is now prepared commercially from itaconic acid. The reactive halogen in 3-thenyl bromide could be directly reacted with a variety of nucleophiles, such as cyanide, or malonate, to give more complex 3-substituted compounds. 3-Thenyl bromide was converted by the Sommelet reaction to 3-thio-phenealdehyde which, with silver oxide, was oxidized to 3-thio-... 

The Sommelet reaction failed with 5-nitro-2-thenyl bromide. 5-Nitro-2-thiophenealdehyde is, therefore, best obtained by nitration of 2-thiophenealdehyde diacetate and separation of the 5-isomer. ... 

The procedure described is a modification of the general procedure of Angyal2 for the preparation of aldehydes from benzylamines by the Sommelet reaction. Isophthalaldehyde has been prepared from w-xylene by preparation of the tetrachloro derivative and hydrolysis,3 from isophthaloyl chloride by the Rosenmund reaction,4 from a,a -dibromo-m-xylene by the Sommelet reaction,5 and from isophthaloyl chloride by reduction with lithium tri-Cbutoxyaluminumhydride.6... 

This appears to be the first reported case of the Sommelet reaction starting with a diamine. 

Bromomethyl-2,3-dimethoxy-7-methylquinoxaline (265) underwent a classical Sommelet reaction and incidental hydrolysis of the methoxy groups to give 7-methyl-2,3-dioxo-l,2,3,4-tetrahydro-6-quinoxalinecarbaldehyde (266) (hexamethylenetetramine, CHCI3, 20°C reflux, 30 min solid from evapora-... 

Evidently this is a hydrogenation and the source of the hydrogen is benzylamine as indicated by the production of benzaldehyde and ammonia in equivalent amounts presumably the benzylamine is dehydrogenated to the imine C,HjCH =NH, which is then hydrolysed. In the absence of hexamine, the maximum yield of benzaldehyde is 50 per cent. When hexamine is added to the reaction mixture, the yield of aldehyde is increased and that of methylbenzylamine is decreased, and methyl-amine is present at the end of the reaction. Hexamine reacts as the methylene derivative of ammonia, CH2=NH, which is hydrogenated to methylamine. The fundamental stage of the Sommelet reaction may be written as ... 

Sodium phenoxide, 32, 75 33, 43, 45 Sodium sulfhydrate, 31, 7 Sodium sulfide nonahydrate, 31, 6 Sommelet reaction, 33, 93 Sorbic acid, S-hydroxy-0-methyl, 3-lactone, 32, 57 Stannic chloride, 33, 91 Stearone, 33, 84 ms-Stilbene, 33, 88 Irans-Stilbene, 33, 89... 

The formyl group is generally introduced via the Vilsmeier reaction by dimethylformamide in the presence of phosphorus oxychloride, by the Sommelet reaction via the corresponding chloromethyl derivative, or by treating the lithio compound with dimethylformamide.87... 

Cf. Gabriel synthesis, where the product is also amine and Sommelet reaction, where the product is aldehyde. The Delepine works well for active halides such as benzyl, allyl halides, and a-halo-ketones. 

Naphthaldehyde has been made from a-naphthonitrile by reduction with stannous chloride, and from naphthalene by the action of aluminum chloride, hydrogen cyanide, and hydrochloric acid. The best preparation is the Sommelet reaction from a-chloro- or a-bromomethylnaphthalene and hexamethylenetetramine in aqueous alcohol is.is. .is.w or glacial acetic acid. This method has been improved in the present procedure by the use of 50% acetic acid as solvent. 

Another way to oxidize primary alkyl halides to aldehydes is by the use of hexamethylenetetramine followed by water. However, this reaction, called the Sommelet reaction. is limited to benzylic halides. The reaction is seldom useful when the R in RCH2CI is alkyl. The first part of the reaction is conversion to the amine ArCH2NH2 (0-44), which can be isolated. Reaction of the amine with excess hexamethylenetetramine gives the aldehyde. It is this last step that is the actual Sommelet reaction, though the entire process can be conducted without isolation of intermediates. Once the amine is formed, it is converted to an imine (ArCH2N=CH2) with formaldehyde liberated from the reagent. The key step then follows transfer of hydrogen from another mole of the arylamine to the imine ... 

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