Regioselective Intramolecular Carbon-Hydrogen Insertion in Copper-Catalyzed Carbenoid Decompositions of cis-1-Methyl-3-Arylcyclohexane-1-Diazomethyl Ketones : Some Synthetic Applications

Recently, we have developed¹ a new route for the stereo-specific introduction of an angular carboxyl or functionalized methyl groups² in a rigid hydrophenanthrene moiety. The key step in this approach is a regioselective intramolecular α-keto carbenoid insertion across the benzylic C-H bond (at C-4a) in CuSO₄-catalyzed thermal decomposition of the diazoketones and to the corresponding tetracyclic ketones and in moderate to good yields. A modified procedure³ of carbenoid decomposition of these diazoketones, in the presence of Cu₂O under irradiation with tungsten filament lamp, improves the yields of the desired C-H insertion products. Thus, the ketones and have been prepared now in consistently higher yields (53-55%) from the pure diazoketones , m.p. 125-127°, and , m.p.     

An Improved Synthesis of 4-Cycloheptenone

A previous paper² described the chemistry of 1-aza-4-cyclo-octene 1 which we prepared from 4-cycloheptenone 2 according to the method of Bahurel et al.³ This procedure involves the condensation of cis-1,4-dichloro-2-butene with ethyl sodio-acetoacetate, yielding, a mixture of four isomers 3–6. The entire mixture is then heated with aqueous potassium hydroxide under reflux for four hours. Under these conditions 5 undergoes decarbethoxylation to yield 4-acetylcyclopentene 7, while 3 yields 2, presumatly by Cope rearrangement atid decarbethoxylation (2 is present in almost negligiblequantity but was reported³ to also yield 2).