Acetylide

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In organometallic chemistry, acetylide refers to chemical compounds with the chemical formulas MC≡CH and MC≡CM, where M is a metal. [1] The term is used loosely and can refer to substituted acetylides having the general structure RC≡CM (where R is an organic side chain). Acetylides are reagents in organic synthesis. The calcium acetylide commonly called calcium carbide is a major compound of commerce.

Contents

Structure and bonding

Structure of the cluster formed from PhC2Li complexed to N,N,N',N'-tetramethyl-1,6-diaminohexane (methylene groups omitted for clarity). Color key: turquoise = Li, blue = N. CAMNEJ.svg
Structure of the cluster formed from PhC2Li complexed to N,N,N′,N′-tetramethyl-1,6-diaminohexane (methylene groups omitted for clarity). Color key: turquoise = Li, blue = N.
Structure of Na2C2. Color code: gray = C, blue = Na. Na2C2structure.jpg
Structure of Na2C2. Color code: gray = C, blue = Na.

Alkali metal and alkaline earth metal acetylides of the general formula MC≡CM are salt-like Zintl phase compounds, containing C2−
2
ions. Evidence for this ionic character can be seen in the ready hydrolysis of these compounds to form acetylene and metal oxides, there is also some evidence for the solubility of C2−
2
ions in liquid ammonia. [4] The C2−
2
ion has a closed shell ground state of 1Σ+
g
, making it isoelectronic to a neutral molecule N2, [5] which may afford it some stability.

Analogous acetylides prepared from other metals, particularly transition metals, show covalent character and are invariably associated with their metal centers. This can be seen in their general stability to water (such as silver acetylide, copper acetylide) and radically different chemical applications.

Acetylides of the general formula RC≡CM (where R = H or alkyl) generally show similar properties to their doubly substituted analogues. In the absence of additional ligands, metal acetylides adopt polymeric structures wherein the acetylide groups are bridging ligands.

Portion of the structure of the polymer copper phenylacetylide (CuC2C6H5). XAPGIF2.png
Portion of the structure of the polymer copper phenylacetylide (CuC2C6H5).

Preparation

Terminal alkynes are weak acids: [7]

RC≡CH + R″M R″H + RC≡CM

To generate acetylides from acetylene and alkynes relies on the use of organometallic [8] or inorganic [9] superbases in solvents which are less acidic than the terminal alkyne. In early studies liquid ammonia was employed, but ethereal solvents are more common.

Lithium amide, [7] LiHMDS, [10] or organolithium reagents, such as butyllithium, [8] are frequently used to form lithium acetylides:

Monopotassium and monosodium acetylide can be prepared from various inorganic reagents (such as sodium amide) [9] or from their elemental metals, often at room temperature and atmospheric pressure. [7]

Copper(I) acetylide can be prepared by passing acetylene through an aqueous solution of copper(I) chloride because of a low solubility equilibrium. [7] Similarly, silver acetylides can be obtained from silver nitrate.

Calcium carbide is prepared by heating carbon with lime (calcium oxide) at approximately 2,000 °C. A similar process is used to produce lithium carbide.

Reactions

Acetylides of the type RC2M are widely used in alkynylations in organic chemistry. They are nucleophiles that add to a variety of electrophilic and unsaturated substrates. A classic application is the Favorskii reaction.

Illustrative is the sequence shown below, ethyl propiolate is deprotonated by n-butyllithium to give the corresponding lithium acetylide. This acetylide adds to the carbonyl center of cyclopentanone. Hydrolytic workup liberate the alkynyl alcohol. [11]

Reaction of ethyl propiolate with n-butyllithium to form the lithium acetylide. Acetylide carbonyl addition.png
Reaction of ethyl propiolate with n-butyllithium to form the lithium acetylide.

The dimerization of acetylene to vinylacetylene proceeds by insertion of acetylene into a copper(I) acetylide complex. [12]

Coupling reactions

Acetylides are sometimes intermediates in coupling reactions. Examples include Sonogashira coupling, Cadiot-Chodkiewicz coupling, Glaser coupling and Eglinton coupling.

Hazards

Some acetylides are notoriously explosive. [13] Formation of acetylides poses a risk in handling of gaseous acetylene in presence of metals such as mercury, silver or copper, or alloys with their high content (brass, bronze, silver solder).

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Acetylene</span> Hydrocarbon compound (HC≡CH)

Acetylene is the chemical compound with the formula C2H2 and structure H−C≡C−H. It is a hydrocarbon and the simplest alkyne. This colorless gas is widely used as a fuel and a chemical building block. It is unstable in its pure form and thus is usually handled as a solution. Pure acetylene is odorless, but commercial grades usually have a marked odor due to impurities such as divinyl sulfide and phosphine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alkyne</span> Hydrocarbon compound containing one or more C≡C bonds

In organic chemistry, an alkyne is an unsaturated hydrocarbon containing at least one carbon—carbon triple bond. The simplest acyclic alkynes with only one triple bond and no other functional groups form a homologous series with the general chemical formula CnH2n−2. Alkynes are traditionally known as acetylenes, although the name acetylene also refers specifically to C2H2, known formally as ethyne using IUPAC nomenclature. Like other hydrocarbons, alkynes are generally hydrophobic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Organometallic chemistry</span> Study of organic compounds containing metal(s)

Organometallic chemistry is the study of organometallic compounds, chemical compounds containing at least one chemical bond between a carbon atom of an organic molecule and a metal, including alkali, alkaline earth, and transition metals, and sometimes broadened to include metalloids like boron, silicon, and selenium, as well. Aside from bonds to organyl fragments or molecules, bonds to 'inorganic' carbon, like carbon monoxide, cyanide, or carbide, are generally considered to be organometallic as well. Some related compounds such as transition metal hydrides and metal phosphine complexes are often included in discussions of organometallic compounds, though strictly speaking, they are not necessarily organometallic. The related but distinct term "metalorganic compound" refers to metal-containing compounds lacking direct metal-carbon bonds but which contain organic ligands. Metal β-diketonates, alkoxides, dialkylamides, and metal phosphine complexes are representative members of this class. The field of organometallic chemistry combines aspects of traditional inorganic and organic chemistry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Organolithium reagent</span> Chemical compounds containing C–Li bonds

In organometallic chemistry, organolithium reagents are chemical compounds that contain carbon–lithium (C–Li) bonds. These reagents are important in organic synthesis, and are frequently used to transfer the organic group or the lithium atom to the substrates in synthetic steps, through nucleophilic addition or simple deprotonation. Organolithium reagents are used in industry as an initiator for anionic polymerization, which leads to the production of various elastomers. They have also been applied in asymmetric synthesis in the pharmaceutical industry. Due to the large difference in electronegativity between the carbon atom and the lithium atom, the C−Li bond is highly ionic. Owing to the polar nature of the C−Li bond, organolithium reagents are good nucleophiles and strong bases. For laboratory organic synthesis, many organolithium reagents are commercially available in solution form. These reagents are highly reactive, and are sometimes pyrophoric.

The Sonogashira reaction is a cross-coupling reaction used in organic synthesis to form carbon–carbon bonds. It employs a palladium catalyst as well as copper co-catalyst to form a carbon–carbon bond between a terminal alkyne and an aryl or vinyl halide.

The azide-alkyne Huisgen cycloaddition is a 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition between an azide and a terminal or internal alkyne to give a 1,2,3-triazole. Rolf Huisgen was the first to understand the scope of this organic reaction. American chemist Karl Barry Sharpless has referred to this cycloaddition as "the cream of the crop" of click chemistry and "the premier example of a click reaction".

<i>n</i>-Butyllithium Chemical compound

n-Butyllithium C4H9Li (abbreviated n-BuLi) is an organolithium reagent. It is widely used as a polymerization initiator in the production of elastomers such as polybutadiene or styrene-butadiene-styrene (SBS). Also, it is broadly employed as a strong base (superbase) in the synthesis of organic compounds as in the pharmaceutical industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Polyyne</span> Any organic compound with alternating C–C and C≡C bonds

A polyyne is any organic compound with alternating single and triple bonds; that is, a series of consecutive alkynes, (−C≡C−)n with n greater than 1. These compounds are also called polyacetylenes, especially in the natural products and chemical ecology literature, even though this nomenclature more properly refers to acetylene polymers composed of alternating single and double bonds (−CR=CR′−)n with n greater than 1. They are also sometimes referred to as oligoynes, or carbinoids after "carbyne" (−C≡C−), the hypothetical allotrope of carbon that would be the ultimate member of the series. The synthesis of this substance has been claimed several times since the 1960s, but those reports have been disputed. Indeed, the substances identified as short chains of "carbyne" in many early organic synthesis attempts would be called polyynes today.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Organozinc chemistry</span>

Organozinc chemistry is the study of the physical properties, synthesis, and reactions of organozinc compounds, which are organometallic compounds that contain carbon (C) to zinc (Zn) chemical bonds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Organocopper chemistry</span> Compound with carbon to copper bonds

Organocopper chemistry is the study of the physical properties, reactions, and synthesis of organocopper compounds, which are organometallic compounds containing a carbon to copper chemical bond. They are reagents in organic chemistry.

<i>sec</i>-Butyllithium Chemical compound

sec-Butyllithium is an organometallic compound with the formula CH3CHLiCH2CH3, abbreviated sec-BuLi or s-BuLi. This chiral organolithium reagent is used as a source of sec-butyl carbanion in organic synthesis.

Copper(I) acetylide, Kupfercarbid or cuprous acetylide, is a chemical compound with the formula Cu2C2. Although never characterized by X-ray crystallography, the material has been claimed at least since 1856. One form is claimed to be a monohydrate with formula Cu
2
C
2
.H
2
O
is a reddish-brown explosive powder.

Lithium carbide, Li
2
C
2
, often known as dilithium acetylide, is a chemical compound of lithium and carbon, an acetylide. It is an intermediate compound produced during radiocarbon dating procedures. Li
2
C
2
is one of an extensive range of lithium-carbon compounds which include the lithium-rich Li
4
C
, Li
6
C
2
, Li
8
C
3
, Li
6
C
3
, Li
4
C
3
, Li
4
C
5
, and the graphite intercalation compounds LiC
6
, LiC
12
, and LiC
18
.
Li
2
C
2
is the most thermodynamically-stable lithium-rich carbide and the only one that can be obtained directly from the elements. It was first produced by Moissan, in 1896 who reacted coal with lithium carbonate.

The Glaser coupling is a type of coupling reaction. It is by far the oldest acetylenic coupling and is based on cuprous salts like copper(I) chloride or copper(I) bromide and an additional oxidant like oxygen. The base in its original scope is ammonia. The solvent is water or an alcohol. The reaction was first reported by Carl Andreas Glaser in 1869. He suggested the following process for his way to diphenylbutadiyne:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Organozirconium and organohafnium chemistry</span>

Organozirconium chemistry is the science of exploring the properties, structure, and reactivity of organozirconium compounds, which are organometallic compounds containing chemical bonds between carbon and zirconium. Organozirconium compounds have been widely studied, in part because they are useful catalysts in Ziegler-Natta polymerization.

Organosodium chemistry is the chemistry of organometallic compounds containing a carbon to sodium chemical bond. The application of organosodium compounds in chemistry is limited in part due to competition from organolithium compounds, which are commercially available and exhibit more convenient reactivity.

In organometallic chemistry, a transition metal alkyne complex is a coordination compound containing one or more alkyne ligands. Such compounds are intermediates in many catalytic reactions that convert alkynes to other organic products, e.g. hydrogenation and trimerization.

In organic chemistry, alkynylation is an addition reaction in which a terminal alkyne is added to a carbonyl group to form an α-alkynyl alcohol.

<i>ortho</i>-Carborane Chemical compound

ortho-Carborane is the organoboron compound with the formula C2B10H12. The prefix ortho is derived from ortho. It is the most prominent carborane. This derivative has been considered for a wide range of applications from heat-resistant polymers to medical applications. It is a colorless solid that melts, without decomposition, at 320 °C

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zirconocene</span> Chemical compound

Zirconocene is a hypothetical compound with 14 valence electrons, which has not been observed or isolated. It is an organometallic compound consisting of two cyclopentadienyl rings bound on a central zirconium atom. A crucial question in research is what kind of ligands can be used to stabilize the Cp2ZrII metallocene fragment to make it available for further reactions in organic synthesis.

References

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