Superacidic activation of 1- and 3-isoquinolinols and their electrophilic reactions

Isomeric 1- and 3-isoquinolinols (11 and 12) when activated in CF(3)SO(3)H-SbF(5) acid system undergo selective ionic hydrogenation with cyclohexane to give 5,6,7,8-tetrahydro-1(2H)- and 5,6,7,8-tetrahydro-3(2H)-isoquinolinones (22 and 27). Under the influence of aluminum chloride similar products were also obtained along with 3,4-dihydro-1(2H)- and 1,4-dihydro-3(2H)-isoquinolinones (23 and 28), respectively. Compounds 11 and 12 also condense with benzene in the presence of aluminum halides, under mild conditions, to give 3,4-dihydro-3-phenyl-1(2H)- and 1,4-dihydro-1-phenyl-3(2H)-isoquinolinones (24 and 29), respectively. Prolonged reaction time or catalysis under strongly acidic HBr-AlBr(3) provides an alternative reaction pathway to yield 5,6-dihydro-6,8-diphenyl-1(2H)- and 5,6,7,8-tetrahydro-6,8-diphenyl-3(2H)-isoquinolinones (25 and 30), respectively. Products 24 and 29 were also found to revert back to 11 and 12 in the presence of aluminum halides in o-dichlorobenzene. The mechanism of these intriguing reactions, which involves superelectrophilic dicationic intermediates, is discussed.