Vinyl and Alkynyl Triazenes: Synthesis, Reactivity, and Applications

Aromatic compounds containing triazenyl groups (N₃ RR') have a profound impact on synthetic organic and medicinal chemistry. In contrast, the chemistry of vinyl and alkynyl triazenes was a largely uncharted territory until recently. The situation has changed over the last five years, and it has become apparent that vinyl and alkynyl triazenes are highly interesting compounds with a unique reactivity. The electron-donating properties of the triazenyl group provide alkynyl triazenes with an ynamide-like reactivity, which can be exploited in reactions of the triple bond. Vinyl triazenes, on the other hand, can be used for electrophilic vinylation reactions. The foundation for this new triazene chemistry are synthetic pathways which allow preparing vinyl and alkynyl triazenes in few steps from readily available starting materials. In this Minireview, we summarize recent developments in this area.

A Conjugate Addition Approach to Diazo-Containing Scaffolds with β Quaternary Centers

Structurally complex diazo-containing scaffolds are formed by conjugate addition to vinyl diazonium salts. The electrophile, a little studied α-diazonium-α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compound, is formed at low temperature under mild conditions by treating β-hydroxy-α-diazo carbonyls with Sc(OTf)3 . Conjugate addition occurs selectively at the 3-position of indole to give α-diazo-β-indole carbonyls, and enoxy silanes react to give 2-diazo-1,4-dicarbonyl products. These reactions result in the formation of tertiary and quaternary centers, and give products that would be otherwise difficult to form. Importantly, the diazo functional group is retained within the molecule for future manipulation. Treating an α-diazo ester indole addition product with Rh2 (OAc)4 caused a rearrangement to occur to give a 2-(1H-indol-3-yl)-2-enoate. In the case of diazo ketone compounds, this shift occurred spontaneously on prolonged exposure to the Lewis acidic reaction conditions.

Interpretation of neighboring group interactions in crystal structures. A solid state and quantum-chemical study of "incipient nucleophilic attack" in 2-diazonium benzoic acid and its benzoate

The concept of the Bürgi–Dunitz angle of attack on carbonyls is compatible with the electronic structure of carbonyls. However, it is argued here that the generalization asserted to describe the interaction of nucleophiles with diazonium ions is inappropriate. Distortions in crystal structures of diazonium ions with proximate nucleophiles were interpreted by an incipient nucleophilic attack (INA) on the formally positive-charged Nα. This "Nα attraction model" relies on the assumption that the formal charge in the most commonly used Lewis structure of diazonium ions represents actual charge. We proposed that the close approach of the proximate nucleophile to the diazonium group occurs to enhance attractive 1,3-(C,Nβ)-bridging interactions and despite repulsion between Nα and the proximate oxygen (Opr). The present study combines theoretical analysis of rotamers of 2-diazonium benzoic acid and its conjugate base with experimental results on the same system to provide compelling evidence that the more general conclusions drawn from analyses of neighboring group interactions in propenoic acid models are fully warranted. The crystallographic record is more fully consistent with the "1,3-bridging attraction model." Combined analysis of solid state and gas phase structures reveals the intrinsic features due to INA. Both electrostatic models can account for these features but with different postulates about the electron density distribution. While the structural analysis alone cannot distinguish between the alternative interpretations, the study of the electronic structure allows one to clearly differentiate between these competing interpretations. A method (ESI) for the quantitative evaluation of electrostatic neighboring group interactions has been devised and this ESI concept employs atomic electrical moments (charges, dipoles, and quadrupoles) determined via topological electron density analysis. The results of the ESI analysis support the 1,3-bridging attraction model and eliminate the Nα attraction model. Key words: electrostatic interactions, electron density analysis, atoms in molecules. X-ray crystallography, ab initio molecular orbital theory, incipient nucleophilic attack, bonding models, ESI analysis.