Fluorolactonization of norbornenecarboxylic acids and their methyl esters with F-TEDA-BF4 and XeF2

The selective fluorolactonization was achieved by treatment of cis-5-norbornene-2,3-endo-dicarboxylic acid or its monomethyl and dimethyl esters with F-TEDA-BF₄ or XeF₂. The reactions of 5-norbornene-endo-2-carboxylic acid and its monomethyl ester with F-TEDA-BF₄ or XeF₂ proceed in a non-selective manner to give fluorolactonization, addition and rearrangement products. The basic factor responsible for selectivity of the fluorolactonization is the presence of two endo-oriented carboxyl groups in the substrate molecule. The electrophilicity and type of the fluorinating agent is of secondary importance in this regard. It is postulated that the fluorolactonization of norbornenecarboxylic acids and their methyl esters with F-TEDA-BF₄ or XeF₂ is realized mainly via “open” fluoronorbornyl carbocation intermediates which in the reaction with XeF₂ are postulated as the tight ion pairs.     

Synthesis of new ionic liquids based on (5Z,9Z)-alkadienoic acids and choline

Efficient synthesis of ionic liquids based on stereoisomerically pure natural and synthetic higher (5Z,9Z)-alkadienoic acids and choline hydroxide was developed. The key unsaturated carboxylic acids were prepared using the stereoselective cross-cyclomagnesiation reaction of aliphatic and oxygen-containing 1,2-dienes with EtMgBr in the presence of Mg metal and Cp₂TiCl₂ catalyst.     

Quantum-Chemical Investigation of the Mechanism of Fluorocyclization of Norbornenecarboxylic Acids by the Action of F-TEDA-BF4

Possible paths for the reaction of norbornenecarboxylic acids with model F-TEDA-BF₄ were studied by the semiempirical PM3 method. The activation energies of the main transformations in the initial reagents and intermediates were determined. Conclusions were reached about the effect of their reaction mechanisms on the distribution of the products.     

Direct iodination of indanone and tetralone derivatives by elemental iodine activated by Selectfluor™ F-TEDA-BF4

Derivatives of indan-1-one and 3,4-dihydronaphthalen-1(2H)-one bearing hydroxy or methoxy substituent on the aromatic ring were efficiently iodinated regioselectively at the α carbonyl position using elemental iodine activated by 1-chloromethyl-4-fluoro-1,4-diazoniabicyclo[2.2.2]octane bis(tetrafluoroborate) (Selectfluor™ F-TEDA-BF₄) in methanol.     

Transition metal free oxidative esterification of alcohols with toluene

Using Bu₄NI as the catalyst and tert-butyl hydroperoxide as the oxidant, direct esterification of alcohols with toluene derivatives was achieved. Mechanistic investigations indicate that the alcohols are sequentially oxidized to aldehydes, carboxylic acids, and then to benzyl esters. Bu₄N⁺ functions as a phasetransfer reagent and iodide catalyzes the reaction.     

CeCl3-Catalyzed Reduction of Methyl Esters of Carboxylic Acids to Corresponding Alcohols with Sodium Borohydride

A wide range of methyl esters, including esters of aromatic carboxylic acids, alkenyl carboxylic acids, aliphatic carboxylic acids, and protected amino acids, were reduced to the corresponding alcohols with NaBH₄ in ethanol in the presence of a catalytic amount of CeCl₃. The reaction was completed within 24 h at ambient temperature and showed high functional group compatibility and chemoselectivity. With esters containing nitro, methoxyl, halogen, alkenyl, and protected amino functionalities, only the ester group was reduced. The alcohols were isolated after evaporation of the solvent and routine aqueous workup in good yields (75–95%).     

Oxidative cleavage of α-sulfonyl ketones to carboxylic acids with Ce(NH4)2(NO3)6

Tandem oxidative cleavage of α-sulfonyl arylketones 2 with the combination of Ce(NH₄)₂(NO₃)₆ and O₂ in MeCN afforded carboxylic acids 3 in moderate to good yields. The plausible reaction mechanism has been discussed.     

Calculations of pKa values of carboxylic acids in aqueous solution using density functional theory

With the specific aim of calculating the acidity equilibrium constant (K_a) of carboxylic acids in aqueous solution we investigated the solute-solvent interactions of these acids and their corresponding anions. The pK_a (−lg K_a) values have been calculated using density functional theory (DFT). The polarized continuum model (PCM) is used to describe the solvent. Using these methods, we successfully predicted the pK_as of 66 carboxylic acids in aqueous with the average error of 0.5 in pK_a units. Two different thermodynamic cycles have been studied. The theoretical values are in better agreement with the experimental results for those acids with moderate strength of acidity with the pK_a value higher than 3.     

Friedel-Crafts acylation of aromatic compounds with carboxylic acids in the presence of P2O5/SiO2 under heterogeneous conditions

A convenient and efficient procedure for the Friedel-Crafts acylation of aromatic compounds with carboxylic acids in the presence of P₂O₅/SiO₂ is described. Both aromatic and aliphatic carboxylic acids reacted easily to afford the corresponding aromatic ketones. The use of non-toxic and inexpensive materials, simple and clean work-up, short reaction times and good yields of the products are the advantages of this method.     

Zirconium-catalyzed cyclopropanation of α-olefins mediated by R′CO2R″ and ClnAlEt3-n

A Cp₂ZrCl₂-catalyzed one-pot cyclopropanation method has been developed to afford alkoxycyclopropanes and cyclopropanols from α-olefins involving esters of carboxylic acids and Cl_nAlEt_3-n.     

Lewis acid-catalyzed tandem acylation–Nazarov cyclization for the syntheses of fused cyclopentenones

Treatment of N-tosylpyrroles or N-tosylindoles with α-unsubstituted α,β-unsaturated carboxylic acids or unsaturated carboxylic acids having an α electron-withdrawing substituent in the presence of TFAA and a Lewis acid catalyst resulted in the formation of fused cyclopentenones via a tandem acylation–Nazarov cyclization sequence, while either the acylation product obtained or no reaction occurred in the absence of the Lewis acid catalyst.     

Bislactonization of unsaturated diacids using lead tetraacetate

The reaction of lead tetraacetate with unsaturated carboxylic acids (or salts) to from bislactones (γ or δ) can be controlled to produce efficiently $\text{cis}$ addition of two carboxylic oxygens to the double bond, in consonance with an initial plumbolactonization step followed by S_N2 displacement of lead.     

Highly Efficient System for Reduction of Carboxylic Acids and Their Derivatives to Alcohols by HfCl4/KBH4

HfCl₄/KBH₄ was found to be a facile, efficient, convenient, and chemoselective system for the reduction of carboxylic acids and their derivatives to the corresponding alcohols under mild conditions. HfCl₄/NaBH₄ was also utilized to reduce the same carboxylic acids and their derivatives, and it was found that the reducing ability of HfCl₄/NaBH₄ was similar to that of HfCl₄/KBH₄. The action of HfCl₄/KBH₄ on other types of substrates, such as benzyl chloride, peracid, epoxide, ketone, amide, imine, pyridine-N-oxide, and nitrile, was investigated, too. In addition, some competitive reductions of styrene oxide in the presence of carboxylic acid, carboxylic ester, nitrile, and amide were achieved.     

Etude cinetique de la catalyse,due a SnCl4,de l'esterification des olefines

Esterification of cyclopentene, cyclohexene, cycloheptene and trans cyclooctene, with acetic, butyric and propionic acids, has been studied by a kinetic method. SnCl₄ is the catalytic agent. SnCl₄ undergoes a degradation which complicates the mathematical analysis of the reaction process. An appropriate mathematical method has been used. The experimental rate constant is connected with Hammett acidity function, H₀, given by dissolution of SnCl₄ in carboxylic acids: log k?_ex,0 = ?H₀ + δ. The kinetic isotope effects of solvent show that general acid catalysis is implied. A reaction mechanism has been put forward to explain every observed fact. The kinetic equation accounts for every mathematical implication of the mechanism.     

Solvent-free fluorination of organic compounds using N-F reagents

Efficient fluorination of 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds, enol acetates of aromatic ketones, and activated aromatic compounds was achieved under solvent-free conditions using Selectfluor™ F-TEDA-BF₄ or Accufluor™ NFSi.     

A highly sensitive isotope-coded derivatization method and its application for the mass spectrometric analysis of analytes containing the carboxyl group

A novel isotope labeling reagent d₀-/d₆-2, 4-dimethoxy-6-piperazin-1-yl pyrimidine (DMPP) has been developed for derivatization toward the carboxyl group based on carbodiimide chemistry for mass spectrometry (MS) analysis. The strengths of this derivatization strategy involve fast labeling (15 s), low chemical background and general access to most carboxylic analytes. This has been demonstrated using a series of compounds containing carboxylic acids, including peptides and proteins. To enhance the MS response of the derivatized analytes, the design of DMPP has been based on integration of the theoretical consideration of high gas-phase hydrogenation capacity and hydrophobicity. In addition, the high abundance product ions at m/z 225 and m/z 231 from d₀-/d₆-DMPP labeled carboxylic acids indicate high efficiency of the gas-phase cleavage induced by the labeling reagent. Quantitative determination of these ions can also be used in single reaction monitoring to achieve extremely high sensitivity toward the target analytes. This has subsequently been used to determine trace free fatty acids in human urine. Furthermore, the DMPP labeled peptides also provide additional sequence information in MALDI–MS/MS because of the formation of sequence-related isotope fragment ions. This DMPP-oriented labeling technique is expected to be a promising tool for the MS detection of many varieties of compounds containing carboxyl groups.     

Development of general methods for the synthesis of new substituted allyl bromides as promising alkenylating agents

A general procedure has been developed for the synthesis of hitherto unknown substituted allyl bromides. The procedure includes preparation of the corresponding α,β-unsaturated carboxylic acid esters from accessible ketones according to the Horner-Emmons reaction, reduction of these esters with diisobutylaluminum hydride to allylic alcohols, and substitution of the hydroxy group by bromine by the action of PBr₃. The E,Z isomer ratio of the synthesized unsaturated compounds ranges from 3: 1 to 4: 1.     

A practical and efficient procedure for reduction of carboxylic acids and their derivatives: use of KBH4-MgCl2

The use of KBH₄-MgCl₂ to reduce carboxylic acids and their derivatives to the corresponding alcohols or the respective reduced products is described. Methyl (S)-3,4-O-isopropylidene-3,4-dihydroxy butanoate 2 used as a reference substrate was reduced with KBH₄ and MgCl₂ in 1:1 mol ratio to (S)-1,2-O-isopropylidene-1,2,4-butanetriol 1.     

Simple and Efficient Procedure for the Friedel–Crafts Acylation of Aromatic Compounds with Carboxylic Acids in the Presence of P2O5/AL2O3 Under Heterogeneous Conditions

An efficient and chemoselective method for the Friedel–Crafts acylation of aromatic compounds using P₂O₅/Al₂O₃ and carboxylic acids. Both aromatic and aliphatic carboxylic acids reacted easily to afford the corresponding aromatic ketones in good yields.     

An improved Pfitzinger reaction for the direct synthesis of quinoline-4-carboxylic esters/acids mediated by TMSCl

An efficient and facile synthesis of quinoline-4-carboxylic esters/acids by TMSCl-promoted reaction of easily available N,N-dimethylenaminones and isatins in alcohols/water has been developed. The improved Pfitzinger reaction involves esterification and cyclization in one-step process, and in situ formed a carboxylic ester/acid group (CO₂R or COOH) at the 4-position of quinoline ring. Moreover, the key features of this protocol are readily available starting materials, good functional group tolerance, mild reaction conditions, operational simplicity, and feasibility of scale up.