The carbonylation of allylic halides and prop-2-en-1-ol catalysed by triethylphosphine complexes of rhodium

In ethanol, [RhX(CO)(PEt3)(2)] added directly or formed in situ from [Rh-2(OAc)(4)]. 2MeOH (OAc = O2CMe) and PEt3 or [Rh(OAc)(CO)(PEt3)(2)] catalysed the carbonylation of CH2=CHCH2X (X = Cl, Br or I) to ethyl but-3-enoate with CH2-CHCH2OEt as a side product. Small amounts of the isomerisation product, ethyl but-2-enoate were produced but no base was required for the reaction. The selectivity of the reaction is in the order Cl > Br > I and prop-2-en-1-ol can be successfully carbonylated to prop-2-enyl but-3-enoate by the same system using 3-chloroprop-1-ene as a promoter. 3-Fluoropropene was not carbonylated, but in the presence of H-2 underwent hydroformylation to produce acetals. 3-Chlorobut-1-ene and 1-chlorobut-2-ene both produced ethyl pent-3-enoate and 3-ethoxybut-1-ene. III situ and ex situ NMR and IR spectroscopic studies have been used to show that the first step of the reaction is oxidative addition to give [Rh(CH2CH=CH2)Cl-2(CO)(PEt3)(2)] for which thermodynamic parameters have been obtained. Both 3-chlorobut-1-ene and 1-chlorobut-2-ene give [Rh(CH2CH=CHMe)Cl-2-(CO)(PEt3)(2)] but with different E: Z ratios. The detailed mechanism of the oxidative addition is discussed. The CO inserts into the Rh-C bond to give [Rh(COCH2CH=CH2)Cl-2(CO)(PEt3)(2)], from which but-3-enoyl chloride reductively eliminates to react with ethanol to give the observed products. High-pressure IR and high-pressure NMR studies reveal that [RhX(CO)(PEt3)(2)] (X = Cl or Br) reacts with CO to give [RhX(CO)(2)(PEt3)(2)], which exists as two isomeric forms. The compound [Rh(OAc)(CO)(PEt3)(2)] catalyses the formation of prop-2-enyl ethanoate from 1-chloroprop-2-ene and sodium ethanoate. A mechanism is proposed.