Toluene atom polarization

Additives that coordinate to Al perturb the polymerization kinetics in toluene. For instance, THF and cyclohexanone compete e-CL for coordination to aluminum (18), which decreases the propagation rate and may even inhibit polymerization. In contrast, kinetics is faster upon addition of a Lewis base, such as 4-picoline (19), because the coordination of this Lewis base onto the Al atom polarizes the metal-alkoxide bond and facilitates the monomer insertion. Although the reactivity of the active sites is increased, the extent of transesterification reactions is reduced, more likely for steric reasons. 

The solubihty of alkylphenols in water falls off precipitously as the number of carbons attached to the ring increases. They are generally soluble in common organic solvents acetone, alcohols, hydrocarbons, toluene. Solubihty in alcohols or heptane follows the generalization that "like dissolves like." The more polar the alkylphenol, the greater its solubihty in alcohols, but not in ahphatic hydrocarbons likewise with cresols and xylenols. The solubihty of an alkylphenol in a hydrocarbon solvent increases as the number of carbon atoms in the alkyl chain increases. High purity para substituted phenols, through Cg, can be obtained by crystallization from heptane. 

These effects can be attributed mainly to the inductive nature of the chlorine atoms, which reduces the electron density at position 4 and increases polarization of the 3,4-double bond. The dual reactivity of the chloropteridines has been further confirmed by the preparation of new adducts and substitution products. The addition reaction competes successfully, in a preparative sense, with the substitution reaction, if the latter is slowed down by a low temperature and a non-polar solvent. Compounds (12) and (13) react with dry ammonia in benzene at 5 °C to yield the 3,4-adducts (IS), which were shown by IR spectroscopy to contain little or none of the corresponding substitution product. The adducts decompose slowly in air and almost instantaneously in water or ethanol to give the original chloropteridine and ammonia. Certain other amines behave similarly, forming adducts which can be stored for a few days at -20 °C. Treatment of (12) and (13) in acetone with hydrogen sulfide or toluene-a-thiol gives adducts of the same type. 

The polar effect was at first invoked to explain various directive effects observed in aliphatic systems. Methyl radicals attack propionic acid preferentially at the a-position, ka/kp = 7.8 (per hydrogen), whereas chlorine " prefers to attack at the /3-position, ka/kp = 0.03 (per hydrogen). In an investigation of f-butyl derivatives, a semiquanti-tative relationship was observed between the relative reactivity and the polar effect of the substituents, as evidenced by the pK, of the corresponding acid. In the case of meta- and / ara-substituted toluenes, it has been observed that a very small directive effect exists for some atoms or radicals. When treated by the Hammett relation it is observed that p = —0.1 for H , CeHs , P-CH3C6H4 and CHs . On the contrary, numerous radicals with an appreciable electron affinity show a pronounced polar effect in the reaction with the toluenes. Compilation of Hammett reaction constants and the type of substituent... 

The nitrone 127 (96% ee) containing an additional carbon atom was synthesized in a similar manner as 124. However, for nitrone 127, no spontaneous cyclization took place (Scheme 12.43). Upon heating of 127 in toluene, an inseparable mixmre of product isomers was formed. It was also found that in the presence of a stoichiometric amount of ZnCl2, the reaction proceeded to give the bicyclo[4.2.1] product 128 as the only observed product with close to complete retention of enantiopurity (ee=94%). The authors propose a more polarized transition state of the Zn-mediated reaction with a well-developed positive charge on one of the carbon atoms of the alkene moiety to account for the inverted direction of the regioselectivity of the reaction (230). A subsequent reduction gave the functionalized cycloheptane 129. 

Guided by Marks s report of the samarium-catalyzed hydroboration of alkenes, Molander has developed a samarium-catalyzed protocol for the cyclization/hydroboration of unfunctionalized 1,6-dienes. In an optimized procedure, reaction of 1,5-hexadiene and l,3-dimethyl-l,3-diaza-2-boracyclopentane catalyzed by Gp 2Sm(THF) in toluene at room temperature for 18 h followed by oxidation gave hydroxymethylcyclopentane in 86% yield (Equation (70) R = H, n — ). The transformation was stereoselective, and Sm-catalyzed cyclization/hydroboration of 2-phenyl-1,5-hexadiene followed by oxidation formed /ra/ i--l-hydroxymethyl-2-phenylcyclopentane in 64% yield (Equation (70) R = Ph, n = ). The samarium-catalyzed reactions was also applicable to the synthesis of hydroxymethylcyclohexanes (Equation (70), n=X) but tolerated neither polar functionality nor substitution on the alkenyl carbon atoms. 

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