3 4- 2-Trimethylenemethane

TMM was the first biradical to be directly characterized by low temperature, matrix isolation EPR in pioneering work by Dowd (Eq. 11.91). The spectroscopy confirmed the threefold symmetry and the triplet ground state that theory had predicted, and allowed kinetic studies under matrix isolation conditions. 

When the diazene in Eq. 11.91 is employed to generate TMM in solution, irreversible ring closure to methylenecyclopropane is too rapid to allow characterization of the biradical. In order to increase the lifetime of TMM and make it more amenable to direct characterization, Berson introduced the modification shown in Eq. 11.92. By incorporating the TMM into a five-membered ring, the two possible ring-closure paths produce very highly strained molecules. 

The cascade mechanism associated with the chemistry of the Berson TMM . 

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Versatile [3 + 2]-cydoaddition pathways to five-membered carbocydes involve the trimethylenemethane (= 2-methylene-propanediyl) synthon (B.M. Trost, 1986). Palladium(0)-induced 1,3-elimination at suitable reagents generates a reactive n -2-methylene-l,3-propa-nediyl complex which reacts highly diastereoselectively with electron-deficient olefins. The resulting methylenecyclopentanes are easily modified, e. g., by ozonolysis, hydroboration etc., and thus a large variety of interesting cyclopcntane derivatives is accessible. 

The TT-allylpalladium complexes 241 formed from the ally carbonates 240 bearing an anion-stabilizing EWG are converted into the Pd complexes of TMM (trimethylenemethane) as reactive, dipolar intermediates 242 by intramolecular deprotonation with the alkoxide anion, and undergo [3 + 2] cycloaddition to give five-membered ring compounds 244 by Michael addition to an electron-deficient double bond and subsequent intramolecular allylation of the generated carbanion 243. This cycloaddition proceeds under neutral conditions, yielding the functionalized methylenecyclopentanes 244[148], The syn-... 

Cycloaddition involving the Pd-catalyzed trimethylenemethane (TMM) fragment 63 and the 1.3-diene 61 with an EWG offers a good synthetic method for the hydroazulene skeleton 65. The cydoaddition of trimethylene-... 

Cycloaddition of COj with the dimethyl-substituted methylenecyclopropane 75 proceeds smoothly above 100 °C under pressure, yielding the five-membered ring lactone 76. The regiocheraistry of this reaction is different from that of above-mentioned diphenyl-substituted methylenecyclopropanes 66 and 67[61], This allylic lactone 76 is another source of trimethylenemethane when it is treated with Pd(0) catalyst coordinated by dppe in refluxing toluene to generate 77, and its reaction with aldehydes or ketones affords the 3-methylenetetrahy-drofuran derivative 78 as expected for this intermediate. Also, the lactone 76 reacts with a, /3-unsaturated carbonyl compounds. The reaction of coumarin (79) with 76 to give the chroman-2-one derivative 80 is an example[62]. 

Catalytic asymmetric Diels-Alder reactions are presented by Hayashi, who takes as the starting point the synthetically useful breakthrough in 1979 by Koga et al. The various chiral Lewis acids which can catalyze the reaction of different dieno-philes are presented. Closely related to the Diels-Alder reaction is the [3-1-2] carbo-cyclic cycloaddition of palladium trimethylenemethane with alkenes, discovered by Trost and Chan. In the second chapter Chan provides some brief background information about this class of cycloaddition reaction, but concentrates primarily on recent advances. The part of the book dealing with carbo-cycloaddition reactions is... 

Recent Advances in Palladium-catalyzed Cycloadditions involving Trimethylenemethane and its Analogs... 

The discovery of palladium trimethylenemethane (TMM) cycloadditions by Trost and Chan over two decades ago constitutes one of the significant advancements in ring-construction methodology [1]. In their seminal work it was shown that in the presence of a palladium(O) catalyst, 2-[(trimethylsilyl)methyl]-2-propen-l-yl acetate (1) generates a TMM-Pd intermediate (2) that serves as the all-carbon 1,3-di-pole. It was further demonstrated that (2) could be efficiently trapped by an electron-deficient olefin to give a methylenecyclopentane via a [3-1-2] cycloaddition (Eq. 1). 

Draw resonance structures for the trimethylenemethane anion C(CH,) 2 in which a central carbon atom is attached to thi ee CH, groups (CH, groups are referred to as methylene). 

The (pentamethylcyclopentadienyl)zirconium amidinate unit also served as a platform for the synthesis and characterization of remarkable cationic and zwitterionic allyl zirconium complexes derived from trimethylenemethane (TMM). A direct synthetic route to the neutral precursors was found in the... 

Zeolite frameworks, 29, 103 Zirconacarboranes, 306 Zirconium diazametallacycles, 252-255 Zirconium f/ -styrene complexes, 255 Zirconium trimethylenemethane complexes, 256-257... 

Interactions polarize bonds. Trimethylenemethane (TMM) and 2-buten-l,4-diyl (BD) dianions (Scheme 6a, b) are chosen as models for hnear and cross-conjngated dianions. The bond polarization (Scheme 7) is shown to contain cyclic orbital interaction (Scheme 6c) even in non-cyclic conjugation [15]. The orbital phase continnity-discon-tinnity properties (Scheme 6d, e) control the relative thermodynamic stabihties. 

There is a degree in the continuity and discontinuity of the orbital phase [20]. 2-Oxopropane-l,3-diyl (Scheme 10) is a hetero analog of trimethylenemethane (TMM) where the orbital phase is continuous in the triplet diradical (Sect. 2.1.5) and discontinuous in the singlet diradical (Sect. 2.1.6). The n and orbitals of carbonyl bonds are lower in energy than those of C=C bonds. The lowering strengthens the interaction of the radical orbitals (a, b) with and weakens that... 

Experimental evidence for the six electron systems has been described in Sect. 2.1.4. Skancke reproduced the relative stabihty of the cross conjugated systems relative to the linear isomers by calculating the trimethylenemethane and buta-l,4-diyl dianions [27] and their dilithio salts [28]. For the four electron systems butadiene is more stable than trimethylenemethane. Experimental examination of the relative stabihties of two electron systems using the trimethylenemethane and buta-14-diyl dications needs to overcome the intrinsic instabihties of dications dissatisfying the octet rule. 

The well-established prototypes of 1,3-diradicals, trimethylenemethane (TMM, 1) and trimethylene (TM, 2) are selected to illustrate our idea. The diradical is assumed to have two singly occupied orbitals, p and q, of nearly the same energy on two radical centers (P and Q in Fig. 4). As addressed in Sect. 2, it is possible for... 

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