Published on Web 08/06/2003
Mechanism of Di-tert-Butylsilylene Transfer from a
Silacyclopropane to an Alkene
Tom G. Driver and K. A. Woerpel*
Contribution from the Department of Chemistry, UniVersity of California,
IrVine, California 92697-2025
Received February 25, 2003; Revised Manuscript Received May 16, 2003; E-mail: kwoerpel@uci.edu
Abstract: Kinetic and thermodynamic studies of the reactions of cyclohexene silacyclopropane 1 and
monosubstituted alkenes suggested a possible mechanism for di-tert-butylsilylene transfer. The kinetic
order in cyclohexene silacyclopropane 1 and cyclohexene were determined to be 1 and -1, respectively.
Saturation kinetic behavior in monosubstituted alkene concentration was observed. Competition experiments
between substituted styrenes and a deficient amount of di-tert-butylsilylene from 1 correlated well with the
Hammett equation and provided a F value of -0.666 ( 0.008, using σp constants. These data supported
a two-step mechanism involving reversible di-tert-butylsilylene extrusion from 1, followed by irreversible
concerted electrophilic attack of the silylene on the monosubstituted alkene. Eyring activation parameters
were found to be ∆Hq ) 22.1 ( 0.9 kcal‚mol-1 and ∆Sq ) -15 ( 2 eu. Competition experiments between
cycloalkenes and allylbenzene determined cycloalkenes to be more efficient silylene traps (krel )1.3, ∆∆Gq
) 0.200 kcal‚mol-1). A summary of the data resulted in a postulated reaction coordinate diagram. The
mechanistic studies enabled rational modification of reaction conditions that improved the synthetic utility
of silylene transfer. Removal of the volatile cyclohexene from the reaction mixture into an evacuated
headspace led to the formation of previously inaccessible cyclohexene-derived silacyclopropanes.
pane 1,3,16 have been employed for silylene transfer. Our
laboratory has shown that cyclohexene silacyclopropane 1 is
an efficient source of silylene, providing silacyclopropanes from
chiral, functionalized alkenes (eq 1).17,18
Through qualitative observations of silacyclopropane stability,
the mechanism for thermal silylene transfer was postulated to
involve the reversible extrusion of free silylene from a cyclic
silane, followed by trapping of the intermediate silylene with
an alkene.2,4,8 Kinetic evidence that di-tert-butylsilylene forma-
tion is reversible, however, has not been obtained. If free di-
tert-butylsilylene is formed from extrusion, its electronic nature
has remained unknown. Additionally, little is known about the
activation parameters of silylene transfer.4b
Introduction
Insight into formation of silacyclopropanes is of particular
interest because of the emerging synthetic utility of these
strained-ring silanes.1 Silacyclopropanes can be formed by
thermolysis of a cyclic silane in the presence of an alkene,2-8
a process that involves silylene intermediates.9-13 Since the
initial discovery by Seyferth and co-workers that hexamethyl-
silirane can generate silylene thermally,6 other cyclic silanes,
including cyclotrisilanes2,5,14,15 and cyclohexene silacyclopro-
(1) Franz, A. K.; Woerpel, K. A. Acc. Chem. Res. 2000, 33, 813-820.
(2) Belzner, J.; Ihmels, H.; Kneisel, B. O.; Gould, R. O.; Herbst-Irmer, R.
Organometallics 1995, 14, 305-311.
(3) Boudjouk, P.; Black, E.; Kumarathasan, R. Organometallics 1991, 10,
2095-2096.
(4) (a) Pae, D. H.; Xiao, M.; Chiang, M. Y.; Gaspar, P. P. J. Am. Chem. Soc.
1991, 113, 1281-1288. (b) Recently, the activation parameters of (t-
Bu3Si)(i-Pr3Si)Si formation were reported: Jiang, P.; Trieber, D., II; Gaspar,
P. P. Organometallics 2003, 22, 2233-2239.
(5) Scha¨fer, A.; Weidenbruch, M.; Peters, K.; von Schnering, H. G. Angew.
Chem., Int. Ed. Engl. 1984, 23, 302-303.
(6) Seyferth, D.; Annarelli, D. C. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1975, 97, 7162-7163.
(7) Seyferth, D.; Annarelli, D. C.; Vick, S. C.; Duncan, D. P. J. Organomet.
Chem. 1980, 201, 179-195.
To understand the fundamental reactivity of silacyclopropanes
and their intermediates, we conducted a quantitative analysis
of the thermal behavior of cyclohexene silacyclopropane 1 in
the presence of an alkene. We believed that a mechanistic
understanding of this reaction would guide improvements to
silacyclopropane synthesis. Analysis of the kinetic behavior and
(8) Seyferth, D.; Annarelli, D. C.; Duncan, D. P. Organometallics 1982, 1,
1288-1294.
(9) Gaspar, P. P.; West, R. In The Chemistry of Organosilicon Compounds;
Rappoport, Z., Apeloig, Y., Eds.; Vol. 2; Wiley: Chichester, 1998; pp
2463-2468.
(10) Haaf, M.; Schmedake, T. A.; West, R. Acc. Chem. Res. 2000, 33, 704-
714.
(11) Scha¨fer, A.; Weidenbruch, M. J. Organomet. Chem. 1985, 282, 305-313.
(12) Weidenbruch, M. Coord. Chem. ReV. 1994, 130, 275-300.
(13) Silylenes can also be produced using photochemical methods. For recent
examples, refer to: (a) Miyazawa, T.; Koshihara, S.; Liu, C.; Sakurai, H.;
Kira, M. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1999, 121, 3651-3656. (b) Gaspar, P. P.;
Beatty, A. M.; Chen, T.; Haile, T.; Lei, D.; Winchester, W. R.; Braddock-
Wilking, J.; Rath, N. P.; Klooster, W. T.; Koetzle, T. F.; Mason, S. A.;
Albinati, A. Organometallics 1999, 18, 3921-3932. (c) Weidenbruch, M.;
Meiners, F.; Saak, W. Can. J. Chem. 2000, 78, 1469-1473.
(14) Belzner, J.; Dehnert, U.; Ihmels, H. Tetrahedron 2001, 57, 511-517.
(15) Weidenbruch, M. Chem. ReV. 1995, 95, 1479-1493.
(16) Boudjouk, P.; Samaraweera, U.; Sooriyakumaran, R.; Chrusciel, J.;
Anderson, K. R. Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. Engl. 1988, 27, 1355-1356.
(17) Driver, T. G.; Franz, A. K.; Woerpel, K. A. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2002, 124,
6524-6525.
(18) CÄ irakovic´, J.; Driver, T. G.; Woerpel, K. A. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2002, 124,
9370-9371.
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10.1021/ja0301370 CCC: $25.00 © 2003 American Chemical Society
J. AM. CHEM. SOC. 2003, 125, 10659-10663
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