155. The Photoreversible Addition of Sulfur Dioxide to Benzobenzvalene: A New Approach to the Benzoprefulvene Biradical

Article abstract of DOI:10.1002/hlca.19900730617

Benzobenzvalene (naphthvalene; 1) is shown to add SO2 to a lateral bicyclobutane bond with formation of a sulfone 2 and a 'γ-sultine' 3.The structure of the latter is unambiguously established by X-ray diffraction.Both adducts extrude SO2 upon direct photolysis at 254 nm and regenerate 1 accompanied by naphthalene in a 1:3 ratio.This result is interpreted in terms of a reversible homolytic cleavage leading, for both, 2 and 3, to the same sulfinyloxy biradical 5, which by loss of SO2 gives the benzoprefulvene biradical 6.The latter in its singlet state undergoes ring closure to 1, or it opens to give naphthalene.