Sulfones, a-halo

Instead of a-halo esters, related reactants can be used e.g. the a-halo derivatives of ketones, nitriles, sulfones and A,A-disubstituted amides. The Darzens condensation is also of some importance as a synthetic method because a glycidic acid can be converted into the next higher homolog of the original aldehyde, or into a branched aldehyde (e.g. 5) if the original carbonyl substrate was a ketone ... 

There have been two general approaches to the direct asymmetric epoxidation of carbonyl-containing compounds (Scheme 1.2) ylide-mediated epoxidation for the construction of aryl and vinyl epoxides, and a-halo enolate epoxidation (Darzens reaction) for the construction of epoxy esters, acids, amides, and sulfones. 

When Z is SOR or SO2R (e.g., a-halo sulfoxides and sulfones), nucleophilic substitution is retarded. The SnI mechanism is slowed by the electron-withdrawing effect of the SOR or SO2R group,and the Sn2 mechanism presumably by the steric effect. 

Among other methods for the preparation of alkylated ketones are (1) the Stork enamine reaction (12-18), (2) the acetoacetic ester synthesis (10-104), (3) alkylation of p-keto sulfones or sulfoxides (10-104), (4) acylation of CH3SOCH2 followed by reductive cleavage (10-119), (5) treatment of a-halo ketones with lithium dialkyl-copper reagents (10-94), and (6) treatment of a-halo ketones with trialkylboranes (10-109). 

Trialkylboranes react rapidly and in high yields with a-halo ketones,a-halo esters, a-halo nitriles, and a-halo sulfonyl derivatives (sulfones, sulfonic esters, sulfonamides) in the presence of a base to give, respectively, alkylated ketones, esters, nitriles, and sulfonyl derivatives. Potassium tert-butoxide is often a suitable base, but potassium 2,6-di-tert-butylphenoxide at 0°C in THF gives better results in most cases, possibly because the large bulk of the two tert-buXy groups prevents the base from coordinating with the R3B. The trialkylboranes are prepared by treatment of 3 mol of an alkene with 1 mol of BH3 (15-16). With appropriate boranes, the R group transferred to a-halo ketones, nitriles, and esters can be vinylic, or (for a-halo ketones and esters) aryl. " °... 

The reaction of an a-halo sulfone with a base to give an alkene is called the Ramberg-Bdcklund reaction. The reaction is quite general for a-halo sulfones with an (x hydrogen, despite the unreactive nature of a-halo sulfones in normal 8 2 reactions (p. 437). Halogen reactivity is in the order I>Br>Cl. Phase-transfer catalysis has been used. In general, mixtures of cis and trans isomers are obtained, but usually the less stable cis isomer predominates. The mechanism involves formation of an episulfone, and then elimination of SO9. There is much evidence for... 

Sulfonate esters and halides can also migrate in this reaction. a-Halo and a-acyloxy epoxides undergo ready rearrangement to a-halo and a-acyloxy ketones,... 

Reaction of a-halo sulfones with bases (Ramberg-Backlund)... 

The subjects of this section are two reactions that do not actually involve carbo-cation intermediates. They do, however, result in carbon to carbon rearrangements that are structurally similar to the pinacol rearrangement. In both reactions cyclic intermediates are formed, at least under some circumstances. In the Favorskii rearrangement, an a-halo ketone rearranges to a carboxylic acid or ester. In the Ramberg-Backlund reaction, an a-halo sulfone gives an alkene. 

Truce and Norrell noticed in 1963 that sulfenes readily undergo 2 - - 2 cycloaddition to ketene diethyl acetal with the formation of 3,3-diethoxythie-tane 1,1-dioxides. The same reaction was carried out by Paquette, using 1,1-dioxide ketals with cyclic a-halo sulfones in which the corresponding chloroketal derivatives 47 were formed. This approach may be illustrated by the addition of ketene diethyl acetal to halogenated sulfenes and to... 

Iron-acyl enolates, such as 2, prepared by x-deprotonation of the corresponding acyl complexes with lithium amides or alkyllithiums, are nearly always generated as fs-enolates which suffer stereoselective alkylation while existing as the crmt-conformer which places the carbon monoxide oxygen anti to the enolate oxygen (see Section 1.1.1.3.4.1.). These enolates react readily with strong electrophiles, such as primary iodoalkanes, primary alkyl sulfonates, 3-bromopropenes, (bromomethyl)benzenes and 3-bromopropynes, a-halo ethers and a-halo carbonyl compounds (Houben-Weyl, Volume 13/9 a, p 413) (see Table 6 for examples). 

S02. There is much evidence for this mechanism,311 including the isolation of the episulfone intermediate,312 and the preparation of episulfones in other ways and the demonstration that they give olefins under the reaction conditions faster than the corresponding a-halo sulfones.313 Episulfones synthesized in other ways (e.g., 6-62) are reasonably stable compounds but eliminate S02 to give olefins when heated or treated with base. 

Decarbonylation of acyl halides 7-20 Cleavage of Michael adducts 7-21 Deoxygenation of vic-diols 7-22 Cleavage of cyclic thionocarbonates 7-23 Deoxidation of epoxides 7-24 Desulfurization of episulfides 7-25 Reaction of a-halo sulfones with bases (Ramberg-Backlund)... 

Oxidation of the heterocycles with common reagents such as MCPBA, sodium periodate or hydrogen peroxide cleanly affords the sulfoxides and sulfones, and it is clear that the sulfur atom is the principal centre of reaction for electrophiles. While the sulfone is a quite inert functionality, the sulfoxides may be reduced to the sulfides with phosphorus pen-tasulfide as for the tetrahydro systems (78CJC1423). Positive halogen sources likewise react at sulfur, and the intermediate sulfonium halide rearranges, usually by 1,2-shift to the a-halo product. 

Various approaches have been used to prepare pyrroles on insoluble supports (Figure 15.1). These include the condensation of a-halo ketones or nitroalkenes with enamines (Hantzsch pyrrole synthesis) and the decarboxylative condensation of N-acyl a-amino acids with alkynes (Table 15.3). The enamines required for the Hanztsch pyrrole synthesis are obtained by treating support-bound acetoacetamides with primary aliphatic amines. Unfortunately, 3-keto amides other than acetoacetamides are not readily accessible this imposes some limitations on the range of substituents that may be incorporated into the products. Pyrroles have also been prepared by the treatment of polystyrene-bound vinylsulfones with isonitriles such as Tosmic [28] and by the reaction of resin-bound sulfonic esters of a-hydroxy ketones with enamines [29]. 

Bordwell, F. G. Cooper, G. D. The effect of the sulfonyl group on the nucleophilic displacement of halogen in a-halo sulfones and related substances./. Am. Chem. Soc. 1951, 73, 5184-5186. 

A useful preparation of A-acylureas initiated by the addition of A-halo amides to isocyanides was described (equation 35)53. / -Keto-a-(phenylthio)alkyl p-tolyl sulfones in... 

Salts of sulfinic acids ace converted to sulfones by the action of pri-lary/ secondary, and benzyl halides, alkyl sulfates, and aryl halides in which the halogen atoms are activated by nitro groups in the ortbo or para positions. The reaction fails with t-amyl halide. The yields vary widely, depending upon the nature of the reactants. From salts of benzenesulfinic acid and simple alkylating agents, sulfones are produced in 50-90% yields. Satisfactory results have been obtained when the aryl sulfinic acid contains nitro, cyano, and acetamido groups. Keto sulfones are made in 48-62% yields by alkylation with a-halo ketones. ... 

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