Radical cyclization/fragmentation reactions of dicyanocyclopropanes to enaminonitriles. A radical alternative to the Thorpe-Ziegler reaction

Article abstract of DOI:10.1055/s-1999-2551

Radical cyclizations to dicyanocyclopropanes provide cyclic enaminonitriles by a series of radical reactions that features radical cyclization to a nitrile and cyclopropane cleavage. The direction of cyclopropane cleavage - and hence the ring size of the final product - depends on the nature of the ring formed in the initial cyclization to the nitrile.