Fragmentation of 2,2,2-triphenylethoxychlorocarbene: evidence for ultrafast fragmentation-rearrangement in excited diazirines.
[reaction: see text] Photolysis of 3-(2,2,2-triphenylethoxy)-3-chlorodiazirine gives 2,2,2-triphenylethoxychlorocarbene which fragments with 1,2-phenyl migration and loss of CO and Cl(-) to yield the 1,1,2-triphenylethyl cation and thence 1,1,2-triphenylethene by proton loss. However, ps and fs laser flash photolysis provides evidence that up to 25% of the alkene product stems from carbocation that arises directly from excited diazirine rather than from the carbene.
Supramolecular Photochirogenesis with Carbenes Entrapped in Cyclodextrins
Two achiral diazirines 1a and 1b have been encapsulated in the inherently chiral cavity of α-cyclodextrin (6-Cy), β-cyclodextrin (7-Cy) and permethylated β-cyclodextrin (TRIMEB) and photolyzed. Because of supramolecular photochirogenesis the generated carbenes afford intramolecular C–H insertion products not as a racemate but one enantiomer is slightly favored. With 1a@(6-Cy)2 the ee of product 7a is doubled. To the best of our knowledge for the first time for carbene reactions, products are imprinted, though modestly, with handedness derived from Cys. The reaction of 1b is highly dependent on the molecular reactor used for inclusion. Whereas 7-Cy is very efficient for favoring dimerization through azine formation, the use of TRIMEB permits exclusive formation of intramolecular insertion product 7b. (© Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2009)
Carbenes as Substrates: Bimolecular Fragmentation of Alkoxychlorocarbenes
Fragmentation reactions of n-butoxychlorocarbene (9), isobutoxychlorocarbene (10), and benzyloxychlorocarbene (2) were studied by product analysis and by laser flash photolysis (LFP). The carbenes were generated photochemically from 3-alkyl-3-chlorodiazirines in (1) MeCN solution; (2) 5.77 M pyridine in MeCN; (3) 0.504 M tetrabutylammonium chloride (Bu4NCl) in MeCN; or (4) 5.77 M pyridine + 0.504 M Bu4NCl in MeCN. In MeCN, 9 gave mainly HCl-capture product, n-butyl dichloromethyl ether (45.1%), carbene dimer (9.8%), and azine (14.6%). Fragmentation products 1-butene (14.4%), 2-butyl chloride (6.0%), and 1-butyl chloride (10.2%) were limited. With added pyridine, HCl was scavenged, the dichloromethyl ether was suppressed, and 1-butene (42.1%), 2-butyl chloride (7.3%), and 1-butyl chloride (24.1%) were dominant. With added Bu4NCl, 1-butyl chloride increased to 46.4%. With both pyridine and Bu4NCl, 1-butyl choride was 63% of the product, with 1-butene at 22.8%. A similar pattern was observed with carbene 10....