Aqueous Catalysis:  Methylrhenium Trioxide (MTO) as a Homogeneous Catalyst for the Diels−Alder Reaction

The title compound proves to be an effective and efficient catalyst for the Diels−Alder reaction when the dienophile is an α,β-unsaturated ketone or aldehyde. It is especially effective in water. Equal amounts of any such dienophile and any of six representative dienes (isoprene, 2-methyl-1,3-pentadiene, 2,3-dimethyl-1,3-butadiene, cyclopentadiene, 1,2,3,4,5-pentamethylcyclopentadiene, and 1,3-cyclohexadiene) were used, along with 1% MTO. The reactions gave usually >90% isolated yield of the cycloaddition product except for the larger dienophiles. Nearly exclusively, there was formed one product isomer, the same one that usually predominates. The reactions were often run in chloroform (mostly) and in other organic solvents. A select number were carried out in water, where the reactions gave a greater product yield in a considerably shorter time. Water, itself, is known to enhance the rates of Diels−Alder reactions, but MTO exerts an additional accelerating effect. Kinetics studies were carried out to show that the rate is proportional to the catalyst concentration. The products do not inhibit the reaction. The desirability of MTO as a Diels−Alder catalyst stems from a combination of favorable properties: the inertness to air/oxygen, the tolerance for many substrates, the use of an aqueous medium, and the absence of product inhibition. The initial step appears to be the (weak) coordination of the carbonyl oxygen to the electropositive rhenium center. Steric crowding around rhenium inhibits reactions of the larger dienophiles.