Thermal Eliminations

The thermal elimination process can be applied to most substituted groups in vinyl polymers by controlled pyrolysis at 600-700°C, producing polyvinylene compounds, for example, by the splitting off of acetic acid from poly(vinyl 

The discoloration of polyacrylonitrile is due to a similar type of elimination reaction, which in this case occurs intra- as well as intermolecularly to give crosslinked insoluble ring products  

The controlled heating of polyacrylonitrile fibers under tension also causes an elimination of nitrogenous products to leave a carbon fiber of high tensile strength that can be considered as the end product of the line of chemical elimination reactions. Carbon fibers from cellulosic materials, lignin, and various interpolymers and blends have been developed. The structures of these products consist largely of three-dimensional carbon networks, partially crystalline and partially graphitic or amorphous. 

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There also exists an acidregioselective condensation of the aldol type, namely the Mannich reaction (B. Reichert, 1959 H. Hellmann, 1960 see also p. 291f.). The condensation of secondary amines with aldehydes yields Immonium salts, which react with ketones to give 3-amino ketones (=Mannich bases). Ketones with two enolizable CHj-groupings may form 1,5-diamino-3-pentanones, but monosubstitution products can always be obtained in high yield. Unsymmetrical ketones react preferentially at the most highly substituted carbon atom. Sterical hindrance can reverse this regioselectivity. Thermal elimination of amines leads to the a,)3-unsaturated ketone. Another efficient pathway to vinyl ketones starts with the addition of terminal alkynes to immonium salts. On mercury(ll) catalyzed hydration the product is converted to the Mannich base (H. Smith, 1964). 

Preparation. Thermal elimination of HCl from l-chloro-l,l-difluoroethane (HCFC-142b) [75-68-3] is the principal industrial route to VDF covered by numerous patents (8—19). Dehydrohalogenation of l-bromo-l,l-difluoroethane (20), or 1,1,1-trifluoroethane (HFC-143a) (21—25), or dehalogenation of l,2-dichloro-l,l-difluoroethane (26—28) are investigated alternative routes (see Fluorine compounds, organic-fluorinated aliphatic compounds). 

Dehydrocholesterol has also been made from cholesterol by the Windaus procedure (Pig. 2) the 3,7-dibenzoate (16) is obtained (via (14) and (15) by oxidation and reduction), which undergoes thermal elimination to give the 7-dehydrocholesteryl benzoate (11) (42—44). However, the yields are substantially lower than those achieved by the brornination—dehydrobrornination method. 

Other methods of preparing tertiary bismuthines have been used only to a limited extent. These methods iaclude the electrolysis of organometaUic compounds at a sacrificial bismuth anode (54), the reaction between a sodium—bismuth or potassium—bismuth alloy and an alkyl or aryl haUde (55), the thermal elimination of sulfur dioxide from tris(arenesulfiaato)bismuthines (56), and the iateraction of ketene and a ttis(dialkylainino)bismuthine (57). 

Scheme 11 Generation of a 1,3-dipoIe by thermal elimination of nitrogen...

The 10l -acetoxy group can be red actively removed with zinc and acetic acid or chromous chloride to give I9-norsteroids in high yield. Thermal elimination (boiling tetralin) of acetic acid from the crude 10)5-acetoxy-A -3-ketone or treatment with methanolic alkali leads to aromatization of ring A. Estrone alkyl ethers are formed from 10)5-acetoxy-19-nor-A -androstene-3,17-dione by treatment with alcohols and perchloric acid. Similar aromatizations are observed with 5,10-oxido, 5,10-dihydroxy, 5,10-halohydrins or 5,10-dihalo-3-ketones. ... 

However, the 0-alkyl derivatives are potentially unstable with respect to thermal elimination of a carbonyl compound and consequent reduction to the corresponding lactam. A combination of steric and electronic factors may permit this decomposition, i.e., 133 -a- 134, to occur at quite moderate temperatures. The 0-methyl derivative of the benzalphthalimidine (132) undergoes slow loss of formaldehyde at 177° (Ti/a in dimethyl sulfoxide 40 minutes), but this elimination is much faster in certain thiohydroxamic acid derivatives, e.g., 135, which lose benzaldehyde readily at 139° in dimethyl sulfoxide (T1/2 6 minutes). The outstanding example of this decomposition, however,... 

A potential drawback of all the routes discussed thus far is that there is little control over polydispersity and molecular weight of the resultant polymer. Ringopening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) is a living polymerization method and, in theory, affords materials with low polydispersities and predictable molecular weights. This methodology has been applied to the synthesis of polyacctylcne by Feast [23], and has recently been exploited in the synthesis of PPV. Bicyclic monomer 12 [24] and cyclophane 13 [25) afford well-defined precursor polymers which may be converted into PPV 1 by thermal elimination as described in Scheme 1-4. 

Polyfpyridine vinylene) 55 may also be prepared by the Wessling route (Scheme 1 -19) [95]. Fully conjugated material may be obtained by thermal elimination of the sulfonium salt 61 or the halide 62. The method, however, does not... 

The dibenzodiazepine 4 is produced by the thermal elimination of hydrogen fluoride from the diphenyldiazene derivative 3.150,151... 

Besides simple alkyl-substituted sulfoxides, (a-chloroalkyl)sulfoxides have been used as reagents for diastereoselective addition reactions. Thus, a synthesis of enantiomerically pure 2-hydroxy carboxylates is based on the addition of (-)-l-[(l-chlorobutyl)sulfinyl]-4-methyl-benzene (10) to aldehydes433. The sulfoxide, optically pure with respect to the sulfoxide chirality but a mixture of diastereomers with respect to the a-sulfinyl carbon, can be readily deprotonated at — 55 °C. Subsequent addition to aldehydes afforded a mixture of the diastereomers 11A and 11B. Although the diastereoselectivity of the addition reaction is very low, the diastereomers are easily separated by flash chromatography. Thermal elimination of the sulfinyl group in refluxing xylene cleanly afforded the vinyl chlorides 12 A/12B in high chemical yield as a mixture of E- and Z-isomers. After ozonolysis in ethanol, followed by reductive workup, enantiomerically pure ethyl a-hydroxycarboxylates were obtained. 

The synthesis of enantiomerically pure propargylic alcohols is possible using the same methodology 43b. Thus, addition of (—)-[(l-chloro-2-phenylethyl)sulfinyl]-4-methylbenzene (14) to propan-al led to a mixture of the diastereomers 15A/15B (d.r. 44 56) which are easily separated by column chromatography. After thermal elimination of the sulfinyl group the vinyl chlorides 16A/16B were obtained as a mixture of E- and Z-oleftns. Elimination of hydrogen chloride was carried out with three equivalents of butyllithium, leading to enantiomerically pure 1 -phenyl-1-pentyn-3-ol. 

Figure 3.56 A rigid t/wis-dialkyl complex that is particularly stable to thermal elimination.

As in the case of PS (Section 8.2.1) polymers formed by living radical polymerization (NMP, ATRP, RAFT) have thermally unstable labile chain ends. Although PMMA can be prepared by NMP, it is made difficult by the incidence of cross disproportionation.42 Thermal elimination, possibly by a homolysis-cross disproportionation mechanism, provides a route to narrow polydispersity macromonomers.43 Chemistries for end group replacement have been devised in the case of polymers formed by NMP (Section 9.3.6), ATRP (Section 9.4) and RAFT (Section 9.5.3). 

A side reaction in NMP is loss of nilroxide functionality by thermal elimination. This may occur by disproportionation of the propagating radical with nitroxide or direct elimination of hydroxy lam ine as discussed in Section 9.3.6.3. In the case of methacrylate polymerization this leaves an unsaturated end group.1" The chemistry has also been used to prepare macromonomers from PMMA prepared by ATRP (Section 9.7.2.1),... 

RAFT end groups are known to be unstable at very high temperatures (>200 °C). Thermal elimination has been used as a means of trithiocarbonate end group removal. For ps430,4W direct elimination is observed (Scheme 9.54). For poly(butyl acrylate)464 the major product suggests a hoinolysis/backbiting/ i-scission reaction is involved (Scheme 9.55). 

Hence, one would expect the thermal elimination of sulfur dioxide or of sulfur monoxide... 

Diphenyl diselenide has been prepared by disproportionation of phenyl selenocyanate in the presence of potassium hydroxide" or ammonia/ and by air oxidation of benzeneselenol. The preparation of benzeneselenol is described in an earlier volume in this series/ In the present procedure phenylselenomagnesium bromide formed from phenylmagnesium bromide and selenium is oxidized directly to diphenyl diselenide with bromine/ Thus the liberation of the malodorous and toxic hydrogen selenide and benzeneselenol is avoided. Benzeneselenenyl chloride has been prepared by thermal elimination of ethyl chloride from ethyl phenyl selenide di-chloride/ by thermal elimination of chlorine from phenylselenium trichloride," and by chlorinolysis of diphenyl diselenide with either sulfuryl chloride " or chlorine. " ... 

The most common procedure previously employed to effect the elimination of thiols from thioacetals has been heating in the presence of a protic acid. For example, propionaldehyde diethyl thioacetal is converted to 1-ethylthio-l-propene on heating at 175° in the presence of phosphoric acid. The relatively high temperature and acidic conditions of such procedures are, however, distinct disadvantages of this method. Another approach consists of oxidation of a thioacetal to the mono S-oxide and thermal elimination of a sulfenic acid at 140-150°. ... 

Base-catalyzed, Add-catalyzed and Thermal Eliminations of Trimethylsilanol. Peterson Reactions... 

Thermal elimination of HMDSO 7 from phosphorus compounds is discussed in Chapter 11. 

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