Synthesis and characterization of tetraoctyloxy substituted naphthalenophanedienes

Tetraoctyloxy-substituted naphthalenophanedienes were synthesized from tetraoctyloxy-substituted dithia[3.3]naphthalenophanes via sequential benzyne Stevens rearrangement, oxidation, and pyrolysis reactions. Surprisingly, only the pseudo-geminal isomer of tetraoctyloxy-substituted dithia[3.3]naphthalenophane was obtained after cyclization of the corresponding starting materials. The structures of the pseudo-geminal isomers of tetraoctyloxy-substituted dithia[3.3]naphthalenophane and tetraoctyloxy-substituted naphthalenophanediene were fully determined by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, high resolution mass spectrometry, and X-ray crystallography. The pseudo-geminal and pseudo-meta diastereomers of tetraoctyloxy-substituted naphthalenophanedienes were isolated by multiple fractional recrystallization from hexane at 5 °C. The solid state structure of the pseudo-geminal isomer of tetraoctyloxy-substituted naphthalenophanediene revealed strongly distorted naphthyl rings with high levels of ring strain.