Vol 53, No 4 (2017)

The review analyzes data published in the past decade on the use of trifluoromethanesulfonic acid (triflic acid, CF₃SO₃H, TfOH) in organic synthesis, in particular in electrophilic aromatic substitution (Friedel–Crafts) reactions, formation of carbon–carbon and carbon–heteroatom bonds, isomerizations, syntheses of carboand heterocyclic structures, and other reactions, as well as in natural and organometallic compounds chemistry. The high protonating power and low nucleophilicity makes trifluoromethanesulfonic acid capable of generating from organic molecules cationic species which can be detected by spectral methods (NMR, IR spectroscopy, etc.), and their transformations can be studied. Experimental simplicity and efficiency of reactions promoted by trifluoromethanesulfonic acid make it a convenient reagent for the synthesis of new organic compounds.

Regioselective opening of the thiirane ring in fluorine-containing thioglycidyl ethers and [(perfluorobutyl) methyl]thiirane by the action of cyclic amines afforded 1,2-aminothiols which were oxidized in situ to symmetrical disulfides. The rate of formation of the latter depended on the amine basicity. According to the NMR data, the resulting disulfides were mixtures of erythro and threo diastereoisomers.

N-Sulfonyl derivatives of 1,4-benzoquinone imine reacted with enamines to give 1,4-addition products and products of their subsequent cyclization, substituted 5-aminobenzofurans and 5-aminoindoles, depending on the solvent nature, electron-withdrawing power of the substituent on the quinone imine nitrogen atom, and enamine structure. The presence of strong electron-withdrawing trifluoromethanesulfonyl group on the quinone imine nitrogen atom favors formation of 1,4-addition products and benzofuran derivatives.

Methylation of 5(6)-nitro-1H-benzimidazole with methyl iodide in the presence of potassium hydroxide and N-methylpyrrolidin-2-one gave a mixture of isomeric 1-methyl-5-nitro- and 1-methyl-6-nitro-1H-benzimidazoles which were reduced with tin in concentrated aqueous HCl on heating. The resulting amines reacted with furan-2-carbonyl chloride in N-methylpyrrolidin-2-one to give furan-2-carboxamides which were treated with excess P₂S₅ in pyridine. Oxidation of isomeric furan-2-carbothioamides with K₃[Fe(CN)₆] in alkaline medium afforded a mixture of intramolecular cyclization products, 2-(furan-2-yl)-6-methyl-6H-imidazo[4,5-g][1,3]benzothiazole and 2-(furan-2-yl)-8-methyl-8H-imidazo[4,5-g][1,3]benzothiazole which were separated by column chromatography and identified.

3-(5,7-Dinitroquinolin-8-yl)pentane-2,4-dione, 5-(5,7-dinitroquinolin-8-yl)pyrimidine-2,4,6-trione, and 5-(5,7-dinitroquinolin-8-yl)-2,2-dimethyl-1,3-dioxane-4,6-dione cesium salts have been synthesized by a simple and efficient procedure via C-arylation of the corresponding β-dicarbonyl compounds with 8-chloro-5,7-dinitroquinoline.

A new efficient procedure has been developed for the synthesis of 6-aminopyrano[3,4-c]pyridines via Smiles type rearrangement. The procedure is characterized by improved overall yield and avoidance of experimentally difficult chlorination step.

The ester group in ethyl 7-amino-3-tert-butyl-4-oxo-4,6-dihydropyrazolo[5,1-c][1,2,4]triazine-8-carboxylate was converted for the first time to methyl by the action of lithium tetrahydridoborate in the presence of boron trifluoride–diethyl ether complex. This reaction has almost no analogies among other classes of organic compounds. New difficultly accessible 7-chloro and 7-azido derivatives were synthesized via diazotization of the reduction product, and treatment of the latter with acetic anhydride afforded the exhaustively acetylated derivative. Diazotization of ethyl 7-amino-3-tert-butyl-4-oxo-4,6-dihydropyrazolo-[5,1-c][1,2,4]triazine-8-carboxylate, followed by reaction with sodium azide, gave the corresponding azide, and the product of azo coupling with ethyl acetoacetate failed to undergo intramolecular cyclization to tricyclic pyrazolo[3,2-c: 5,1-c′]bis[1,2,4]triazine system.

New substituted pyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidin-4-ones have been synthesized as a result of a series of transformations including hydrolysis of ethyl 5-amino-1H-pyrazole-4-carboxylates, cyclization of the carboxylic acids thus obtained to pyrazolo[3,4-d][1,3]oxazin-4(1H)-ones, and treatment of the latter with substituted anilines. The final pyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidin-4-one derivatives can also be synthesized from 5-(arylamido)-1H-pyrazole-4-carboxylic acids in the presence of a catalytic amount of anhydrous zinc(II) chloride.

An efficient method has been developed for the synthesis of 7,16,25-triaryl-7,8,16,17,25,26-hexahydro-6H,15H,24H-tribenzo[f,m,t][1,5,8,12,15,19,3,10,17]hexaoxatriazacyclohenicosines, 3,8-diaryl-2,3,4,7,8,9-hexahydrobenzo[1,2-e:4,3-e′]bis[1,3]oxazines, 3,9-bis(chlorophenyl)-3,4,9,10-tetrahydro-2H,8H-benzo[1,2-e:3,4-e′]bis[1,3]oxazines, and 2,9-bis(chlorophenyl)-1,2,3,8,9,10-hexahydrobenzo[1,2-e:6,5-e′]bis-[1,3]oxazines via cycloaminomethylation of pyrocatechol, resorcinol, and hydroquinone with N,N-bis(methoxymethyl) anilines in the presence of samarium catalysts.

An efficient synthetic approach to 2E,4E and 2E,4Z isomers of ethyl 5-chloropenta-2,4-dienoate has been developed on the basis of one-pot oxidation–olefination of readily accessible (E)- and (Z)-3-chloroprop-2-en-1-ols by the action of barium manganate and ethyl (triphenyl-λ⁵-phosphanylidene)acetate.

Phosphorylation of methyl 2-methylidene-3-oxolup-20(29)-en-28-oate with triphenylphosphonium trifluoromethanesulfonate in methylene chloride at 20°C afforded 90% of a γ-oxoalkylphosphonium salt containing a terpenoid fragment, [28-methoxy-3,28-dioxolup-20(29)-en-2-ylmethyl]triphenylphosphonium trifluoromethanesulfonate, as a mixture of two epimers (2S/2R) at a ratio of 2: 1.

New 1-(ω-chloroalkyl)isatins were synthesized by alkylation of isatin with α-bromo-ω-chloroalkanes. The reaction of 1-(3-chloropropyl)isatin with tris(diethylamino)phosphine followed the deoxygenation path with selective formation of isoindigo derivative.

Trifluoro-N-(oxo-λ⁴-sulfanylidene)methanesulfonamide reacted with 1-phenylpyrazolidin-3-one and 4-methyl-1-phenylpyrazolidin-3-one to give 1-phenyl-1,2-dihydro-3H-pyrazol-3-ones. A probable oxidation mechanism was proposed.

2H-Benzimidazole 1,3-dioxides undergo thermal isomerization to 3H-2,1,4-benzoxadiazine 4-oxides which are converted to 2H-benzimidazole 1-oxides on further heating. Irradiation of 3H-2,1,4-benzoxadiazine 4-oxides with sunlight induces their transformation to 2H-benzimidazole 1,3-dioxides. 3H-2,1,4-Benzoxadiazine 4-oxides containing nucleophilic heterocyclic substituents are considerably more stable to sunlight, and they can be used as photochromic compounds.