Titanium, organomagnesium compounds

Thirty years ago it was reported that reactions of Grignard reagents with 1-alkenes, catalysed by titanium tetrachloride, lead to organomagnesium compounds, formally derived by addition of HMgX to the carbon-carbon double bond [50,51], e.g. 

Dicyclopentadienyltitanium dichloride is possibly superior to titanium tetrachloride as a catalyst. Nickel(ll) compounds are also active, but with these catalysts concurrent addition of the organomagnesium compounds to carbon-carbon multiple bonds (see Section 4.1) causes complications. Examples of hydromagnesiation by Grignard reagents are listed in Table 3.8. As will be seen from entries in Table 3.8, the stereochemistry of addition to alkynes is syn. The regiochemistry is also usually predictable in the relevant examples in Table 3.8, one regioisomer is obtained mainly or exclusively. In other cases, however, mixtures are formed [54]. 

Active polymerization catalysts have been derived from organomagnesium compounds, for example by reaction with titanium (tv) chloride [7] the polymerization of various vinyl monomers has been initiated by organomagnesium compounds [8] and recently polymerization initiated by magnesium ate complexes has been described [9, 10]. 

For example, supported TiCl4/MgCl2 catalysts show a short period of acceleration, followed by a prolonged steady period 92,93). However, in the presence of electron donors, they may show the typical decay rate kinetics observed during propylene polymerization 93). Bulk catalysts prepared by interaction of TiCU with Mg(OR)2 show either a stationary rate, or a non-stationary rate, according to the titanium content 88,94). Bulk catalysts prepared by reduction of TiCl4 with organomagnesium compounds show a decay type rate 92-95>. 

Less acidic than Ti and Zi chloroderivatives, MeTi(OPr )3 perfoims chelation-controlled addition to chiral alkoxy ketones as well as or better than organomagnesium compounds, but fails to chelate to aldehydes or hindered ketones. Should the formation of a cyclic chelation intermediate be forbidden, the reaction is subject to nonchelation control, according to Ae Felkin-Anh (or Comforth) model. Under these circumstances, the ratio of the diastereomeric products is inverted in favor of the anti-Cram product(s). In the case of benzil (83 Scheme 7) this can be accounted for by the unlikely formation of a cyclic intermediate such as (85), and thus the preferential intermediacy of the open chain intermediate (86) that leads to the threo compound (88). This view is substantiated by the fact that replacement of titanium with zirconium, which is characterized by longer M—O bonds, restores the possibility of having a cyclic intermediate and, as a consequence, leads to the erythro meso) compound (87) thus paralleling the action of Mg and Li complexes. 

Epstein, O. L., Savchenko, A. I., Kulinkovich, O. G. On the mechanism of titanium-catalyzed cyclopropanation of esters with aliphatic organomagnesium compounds. Deuterium distribution in the reaction products of (CD3)2CHMgBr with ethyl 3-chloropropionate in the presence of titanium tetraisopropoxide. Russ. Chem. Bull. 2000, 49, 378-380. 

This rearrangement from isopropyl to n-propyl Grignard implies that any Grignard may be used to provide the intermediate subvalent titanium compound, and that addition of externally generated olefin would lead to the synthesis of organomagnesium compounds directly from olefins, without the intermediate formation of alkyl halide. 

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