Terminal alkynes hydroboration-oxidation

The hydroboration/oxidation sequence is complementary to the direct, mercury(ll)-catalyzed hydration reaction of a terminal alkyne because different products result. Direct hydration with aqueous acid and mercury(IJ) sulfate leads to a methyl ketone, whereas hydroboration/oxidation of the same terminal alkyne leads to an aldehyde. 

The chemistry of alkynes is dominated by electrophilic addition reactions, similar to those of alkenes. Alkynes react with HBr and HC1 to yield vinylic halides and with Br2 and Cl2 to yield 1,2-dihalides (vicinal dihalides). Alkynes can be hydrated by reaction with aqueous sulfuric acid in the presence of mercury(ll) catalyst. The reaction leads to an intermediate enol that immediately isomerizes to yield a ketone tautomer. Since the addition reaction occurs with Markovnikov regiochemistry, a methyl ketone is produced from a terminal alkyne. Alternatively, hydroboration/oxidation of a terminal alkyne yields an aldehyde. 

A synthetically useful virtue of enol triflates is that they are amenable to palladium-catalyzed carbon-carbon bond-forming reactions under mild conditions. When a solution of enol triflate 21 and tetrakis(triphenylphosphine)palladium(o) in benzene is treated with a mixture of terminal alkyne 17, n-propylamine, and cuprous iodide,17 intermediate 22 is formed in 76-84% yield. Although a partial hydrogenation of the alkyne in 22 could conceivably secure the formation of the cis C1-C2 olefin, a chemoselective hydrobora-tion/protonation sequence was found to be a much more reliable and suitable alternative. Thus, sequential hydroboration of the alkyne 22 with dicyclohexylborane, protonolysis, oxidative workup, and hydrolysis of the oxabicyclo[2.2.2]octyl ester protecting group gives dienic carboxylic acid 15 in a yield of 86% from 22. 

In comparison with the hydroboration and diborafion reactions, thioboration reactions are relatively limited. In 1993, Suzuki and co-workers reported the Pd(0)-catalyzed addition of 9-(alkylthio)-9-BBN (BBN = borabicyclo [3.3.1] nonane) derivatives to terminal alkynes to produce (alkylthio)boranes, which are known as versatile reagents to introduce alkylthio groups into organic molecules [21], Experimental results indicate that the thioboration reactions, specific to terminal alkynes, are preferentially catalyzed by Pd(0) complexes, e.g. Pd(PPh3)4, producing (thioboryl)alkene products, in which the Z-isomers are dominant. A mechanism proposed by Suzuki and co-workers for the reactions involves an oxidative addition of the B-S bond to the Pd(0) complex, the insertion of an alkyne into the Pd-B or Pd-S bond, and the reductive elimination of the (thioboryl)alkene product. 

Hydroboration-oxidation of alkynes preparation of aldehydes and ketones Hydroboration-oxidation of terminal alkynes gives syn addition of water across the triple bond. The reaction is regioselective and follows anti-Markovnikov addition. Terminal alkynes are converted to aldehydes, and all other alkynes are converted to ketones. A sterically hindered dialkylborane must be used to prevent the addition of two borane molecules. A vinyl borane is produced with anU-Markovnikov orientation, which is oxidized by basic hydrogen peroxide to an enol. This enol tautomerizes readily to the more stable keto form. 

Laurel Schafer of the University of British Columbia reports (Organic Lett. 2003,5,4733-4736) that terminal alkynes undergo smooth hydroamination with a Ti catalyst. The intermediate imine 4 can be hydrolyzed to the aldehyde 5 or reduced directly to the amine 6. The alkyne to aldehyde conversion has previously been carried out by hydroboration/oxidation (J. Org. Chem. 1996, 61, 3224), hydrosilylation/oxidation (Tetrahedron Lett. 1984,25, 321), or Ru catalysis (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2001, 123, 11917). There was no previous general procedure for the anti-Markownikov conversion of a terminal alkyne to the amine. 

Steps a-c (hydroboration-protonolysis-oxidation) represent a method for the selective reduction of a terminal alkyne in the presence of an alkene. 

Hydroboration-Oxidation In Section 8-7 we saw that hydroboration-oxidation adds water across the double bonds of alkenes with anti-Markovnikov orientation. A similar reaction takes place with alkynes, except that a hindered dialkylborane must be used to prevent addition of two molecules of borane across the triple bond. Di(second-ary isoamyl)borane, called disiamylborane, adds to the triple bond only once to give a vinylborane. (Amyl is an older common name for pentyl.) In a terminal alkyne, the boron atom bonds to the terminal carbon atom. 

Aldehydes, RCHO (Sec. 7.9) (Sec. 7.9) (Sec. 8.4) (Sec. 17.7, 19.2) (Sec. 19.2, 21.6) from disubstituted alkenes by ozonolysis from 1,2-diols by cleavage with sodium periodate from terminal alkynes by hydroboration followed by oxidation from primary alcohols by oxidation from esters by reduction with DIB AH [HA1(i-Bu)2]... 

Hydroboration-oxidation of an internal alkyne forms a ketone. Hydroboration of a terminal alkyne adds BH2 to the less substituted, terminal carbon. After oxidation to the enol, tautomerization yields an aldehyde, a carbonyl compound having a hydrogen atom bonded to the carbonyl carbon. 

Hydration (H2O, H2SO4, and HgS04> and hydroboration-oxidation (BH3 followed by H2O2, HO") both add the elements of H2O across a triple bond. Sample Problem 11.4 shows that different constitutional isomers are formed from terminal alkynes in these two reactions despite their similarities. 

When an alkyne undergoes the acid-catalyzed addition of water, the product of the reaction is an enol. The enol immediately rearranges to a ketone. A ketone is a compound that has two alkyl groups bonded to a carbonyl (C=0) group. An aldehyde is a compound that has at least one hydrogen bonded to a carbonyl group. The ketone and enol are called keto-enol tautomers they differ in the location of a double bond and a hydrogen. Interconversion of the tautomers is called tautomerization. The keto tautomer predominates at equilibrium. Terminal alkynes add water if mercuric ion is added to the acidic mixture. In hydroboration-oxidation, H is not the electrophile, H is the nucleophile. Consequently, mercuric-ion-catalyzed addition of water to a terminal alkyne produces a ketone, whereas hydroboration-oxidation of a terminal alkyne produces an aldehyde. 

Oxidation of organoboranes to alcohols is usually effected with alkaline hydrogen peroxide. The reaction is of wide applicability and many functional groups are unaffected by the reaction conditions, so that a variety of substituted alkenes can be converted into alcohols by this procedure. Several examples have been given above. A valuable feature of the reaction is that it results in the overall addition of water to the double (or triple) bond, with a regioselectivity opposite to that from acid-catalysed hydration. This follows from the fact that, in the hydroboration step, the boron atom adds to the less-substituted carbon atom of the multiple bond. Terminal alkynes, for example, give aldehydes in contrast to the methyl ketones obtained by mercury-assisted hydration. 

Recently Miyaura and co-workers have reported a trans-hydroboration of terminal alkynes using [Rh(COD)Cl]2[PCPr)3]4 or [Ir(COD)Cl]2[P( Pr)3]4 (eq 13). Mechanistic studies via deuteriumlabeling show that after the oxidative addition of the alkyne to the metal, the acetylenic deuterium undergoes migration to the S-carbon resulting in the formation of a vinylidene metal complex. Oxidative addition of borane to the metal complex and 1,2-... 

Alkynes undergo hydroboration to give alkenylboranes, which can be oxidized to give carbonyl compounds with hydrogen peroxide. The net result of the two-step sequence is hydration, which gives aldehydes from terminal alkynes. 

The hydroboration of disubstituted (internal) alkynes leads to a mixture of two ketones. When 2-pentyne reacts with borane, two vinylboranes are formed in virtually equal amounts 120 and 121. There is no significant difference in steric hindrance to make one transition state favored over the other, so both vinylboranes are formed. Subsequent oxidation leads to the isomeric ketone products (from their respective enols) 2-pentanone (122) and 3-pentanone H23). To conclude, hydroboration of a terminal alkyne leads to an aldehyde as the major product, whereas hydroboration of an internal alkyne gives a mixture of two isomeric ketones. 

We have now seen how to prepare both terminal and internal alkynes from acetylene and substituted acetylenes, and we have seen several common reactions of alkynes, including addition (HX, X, and H2O), hydroboration-oxidation, and reduction. Now let us move a step farther to consider what might be called the art of organic synthesis. 

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