Superelectrophilic activation

Various sulfonium and carbosulfonium ions show remarkably enhanced reactivity upon superelectrophilic activation, similar to their oxygen analogs so do selenonium and telluronium ions. The alkylating ability of their trialkyl salts, for example, is greatly increased by protosolvation. 

In these (and other) solid superacid catalyst systems, bi- or multi-dentate interactions are thns possible, forming highly reactive intermediates. This amounts to the solid-state equivalent of protosolvation resulting in superelectrophilic activation. 

G. Prakash, G. K. S. Efficient Chemoselective Carboxylation of Aromatics to Arylcarboxylic Acids with Superelectrophilically Activated Carbon Dioxide-Al2CI6/Al System. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2002, 124, 11379-11391. (d) Klumpp, D. A. Rendy, R. McElrea, A. Superacid Catalyzed Ring-opening Reactions Involving 2-Oxazolines and the Role of Superelectrophilic Intermediates. Tetrahedron Lett. 2004, 45, 7959-7961. 

As already mentioned and shown, considerable experimental and theoretical evidence has been collected over the last decades, which supports the idea of superelectrophilic activation, that is, protosolvation1 2 or de facto protonation of cationic intermediates.3-5 Examples of superelectrophiles as highly reactive dica-tionic (doubly electron-deficient) and tricationic intermediates were discussed in Chapter 4. 

Prakash, Olah, and co-workers256 have prepared Mosher s acid analogs by the hydroxyalkylation of substituted benzenes with ethyl trifluoropyruvate [Eq. (5.95)]. Deactivated aromatics (fluorobenzene, chlorobenzene) required the use of excess triflic acid indicative of superelectrophilic activation.3 5 In contrast to these observations, Shudo and co-workers257 reported the formation gem-diphenyl-substituted ketones in the alkylation of benzene with 1,2-dicarbonyl compounds [Eq. (5.96)]. In weak acidic medium (6% trifluoroacetic acid-94% triflic acid), practically no reaction takes place. With increasing acidity the reaction accelerates and complete conversion is achieved in pure triflic acid, indicating the involvement of diprotonated intermediates. 

Two types of interactions have been shown to be involved in superelectrophilic species. Superelectrophiles can be formed by the further interaction of a conventional cationic electrophile with Brpnsted or Lewis acids (eq 16).23 Such is the case with the further protonation (protosolvation) or Lewis acid coordination of suitable substitutents at the electron deficient site, as for example in carboxonium cations. The other involves further protonation or complexation formation of a second proximal onium ion site, which results in superelectrophilic activation (eq 17).24... 

The concept of superelectrophilic activation was first proposed 30 years ago.20 Since these early publications from the Olah group, superelectrophilic activation has been recognized in many organic, inorganic, and biochemical reactions.22 Due to the unusual reactivities observed of superelectrophiles, they have been exploited in varied synthetic reactions and in mechanistic studies. Superelectrophiles have also been the subject of numerous theoretical investigations and some have been directly observed by physical methods (spectroscopic, gas-phase methods, etc.). The results of kinetic studies also support the role of superelectrophilic activation. Because of the importance of electrophilic chemistry in general and super-acidic catalysis in particular, there continues to be substantial interest in the chemistry of these reactive species. It is thus timely to review their chemistry. 

Superelectrophilic activation has also been proposed to be involved, based upon the reactivity of carbocations with molecular hydrogen (a a-donor).16 This chemistry is probably even involved in an enzymatic system that converts CO2 to methane. It was found that A. A -menthyl tetrahy-dromethanopterin (11) undergoes an enzyme-catalyzed reaction with H2 by hydride transfer to the pro-R position and releases a proton to give the reduced product 12 (eq 15). Despite the low nucleophilicity of H2, cations like the tert-butyl cation (13) are sufficiently electrophilic to react with H2 via 2 electron-3 center bond interaction (eq 16). However, due to stabilization (and thus delocalization) by adjacent nitrogen atoms, cations like the guanidinium ion system (14) do not react with H2 (eq 17). 

As noted previously in Chapter 1, the electrophilic reactivities of acetyl salts increase dramatically as the acidity of the reaction medium increases. This was one of the observations that lead Olah and co-workers to first propose the concept of superelectrophilic activation, or protosolvation of the acetyl cation, in 1975.2 This seminal paper described the chemistry of acetyl hexafluoroantimonate (CHsCO+SbFg-) and the reaction with alkanes in various solvents. In aprotic solvents such as SO2, SO2CIF, AsF3, and CH2CI2, there was no reaction. However in HF-BF3, acetyl salts react with Ao-alkanes and efficient hydride abstraction is observed.27 This was interpreted by Olah as evidence for protonation of the acetyl... 

Kinetic evidence suggests the formation of increasing superelectrophilic activity (10-13), as the acidity of the reaction media increases from Hq — 7.7 to Hq — 13.7 (vide supra). 

Superacidic FSO3H (fluorosulfonic acid, Ho — 15) has also been used in some studies involving superelectrophilic activation. However, due to its tendency for sulfonation and oxidation, this acid has found only limited use in synthetic conversions involving superelectrophiles. Fluorosulfonic acid has been shown effective to activate nitronium salts in their reactions with weak nucleophiles, and again it was suggested that the protosolvated species (6) is involved in the reactions.28 Both fluorosulfonic acid and triflic acid have been reported to give the diprotonated species (14) from 3-arylindenones (eq 12) 29... 

As discussed in Chapter 1, Brouwer and Kiffen reported the observation that HF-BF3 promoted hydride transfer from isoalkanes to acyl cations. These results were later shown by Olah and co-workers to be due to superelectrophilic activation of the acyl cation (24, eq 13).37 Diproto-nated acetone and aldehydes were also shown to abstract hydride from isoalkanes in HF-BF3 solutions.38 Carboxonium ions (25) are generally... 

As discussed previously, superelectrophilic activation in biological systems has been found even with a metal-free hydrogenase enzyme found in methanogenic archea, an enzymatic system that converts CO2 to methane.57 It was found that /V5./V10-menthyl tetrahydromethanopterin (42) undergoes an enzyme-catalyzed reaction with H2 by hydride transfer to the pro-R position and release of a proton to form the reduced product (43 eq 36). 

The dimethyloxonium ion (38) is itself not reactive towards CO. However, superelectrophilic activation enables it to react with carbon monoxide. 

Like the trialkyloxonium superelectrophiles, the salts of trimethyl sul-fonium (CH3)sS+, selenonium (CEL Se"1", and telluronium (CE Te4" ions have also been shown by Laali et al. to undergo superelectrophilic activation.41 These onium salts methylate toluene in FSChH-SbFj, but with the weaker Bronsted superacid CF3SO3H (triflic acid, //q —14.1), no methylation takes place (eq 12). 

The described superelectrophilic activation and fluorene-cyclization is thought to involve a lowered energy of the LUMO and concomitant delocalization of positive charge into the aryl ring(s).32b Calculations at the 4-31G//STO-3G level on a model system (Figure 2) have shown that the amount of positive charge in the phenyl ring increases upon formation of the dication (67) when compared to the monocation (66) and the benzyl cation (calculations are based on fully planar structures). It is well known... 

With the monocationic species, no fluorene cyclization is observed. However upon addition of CF3SO3H, the cyclization occurs almost quantitatively. This is consistent with formation of the protonated, dicationic intermediate (46) leading to the cyclization product (59). In this same study, it is noted that other stable monocationic 1,1-diarylethyl cations (i.e., the 1,1-diphenylethyl cation) do not readily form the fluorene ring system, indicating the importance of superelectrophilic activation. 

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