Sulfonic halides

Ailyl sulfides, sulfonates, halides, phosphonates, silanes... 

This concept is represented by the generalized conversion of 60 into 61 (Scheme 1.9). highlighting the large variety of species that can serve as the departing group in the process. Among these, sulfonates, halides, N2, thiolates, and selenolates are the most common. 

Allyl Sulfides, Sulfones, Halides, Phosphonates, and Silanes 189... 

Alkyl halides and sulfonates are the most frequently used alkylating acceptor synthons. The carbonyl group is used as the classical a -synthon. O-Silylated hemithioacetals (T.H. Chan, 1976) and fomic acid orthoesters are examples for less common a -synthons. In most synthetic reactions carbon atoms with a partial positive charge (= positively polarized carbon) are involved. More reactive, "free carbocations as occurring in Friedel-Crafts type alkylations and acylations are of comparably limited synthetic value, because they tend to react non-selectively. 

Lithiation at C2 can also be the starting point for 2-arylatioii or vinylation. The lithiated indoles can be converted to stannanes or zinc reagents which can undergo Pd-catalysed coupling with aryl, vinyl, benzyl and allyl halides or sulfonates. The mechanism of the coupling reaction involves formation of a disubstituted palladium intermediate by a combination of ligand exchange and oxidative addition. Phosphine catalysts and salts are often important reaction components. 

DihaIogenothiazoIes (271) thus can be prepared from sodium acetylaminomethane sulfonate (270) and thionyl halide, but this reaction proceeds in low yield. With X — Cl, the yield is 20%, while with X = Br the yield decreases to 2% (Scheme 140). 

Alkyl sulfonate esters resemble alkyl halides m their ability to undergo ehmma tion and nucleophilic substitution... 

Because halides are poorer leaving groups than p toluene sulfonate alkyl p toluene sulfonates can be converted to alkyl halides by 8 2 reactions involving chloride bro mide or iodide as the nucleophile... 

Sulfonate esters are subject to the same limitations as alkyl halides Competition from elimination needs to be considered when planning a functional group transforma tion that requires an anionic nucleophile because tosylates undergo elimination reactions just as alkyl halides do... 

An advantage that sulfonate esters have over alkyl halides is that their prepara tion from alcohols does not involve any of the bonds to carbon The alcohol oxygen becomes the oxygen that connects the alkyl group to the sulfonyl group Thus the configuration of a sulfonate ester is exactly the same as that of the alcohol from which It was prepared If we wish to study the stereochemistry of nucleophilic substitution m an optically active substrate for example we know that a tosylate ester will have the same configuration and the same optical purity as the alcohol from which it was prepared... 

The mechanisms by which sulfonate esters undergo nucleophilic substitution are the same as those of alkyl halides Inversion of configuration is observed m 8 2 reac tions of alkyl sulfonates and predominant inversion accompanied by racemization m 8 1 processes... 

Solid Superacids. Most large-scale petrochemical and chemical industrial processes ate preferably done, whenever possible, over soHd catalysts. SoHd acid systems have been developed with considerably higher acidity than those of acidic oxides. Graphite-intercalated AlCl is an effective sohd Friedel-Crafts catalyst but loses catalytic activity because of partial hydrolysis and leaching of the Lewis acid halide from the graphite. Aluminum chloride can also be complexed to sulfonate polystyrene resins but again the stabiUty of the catalyst is limited. 

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