The chemical properties of lithium silenolates toward dienes were
studied. The reaction
of lithium
2-tert-butyl-1,1-bis(trimethylsilyl)silen-2-olate
(1a) with butadiene at −40 °C,
followed by hydrolysis, afforded
2-tert-butyl-1,1-bis(trimethylsilyl)silacyclohex-4-en-2-ol,
derived from [2 + 4] cycloaddition of 1a with butadiene,
in 94% yield. Similar treatment of
lithium 2-adamantyl-1,1-bis(trimethylsilyl)silen-2-olate
(1b) gave the respective adduct in
87% yield. The reactions of lithium silenolates
1a,b with 2,3-dimethylbutadiene,
isoprene,
and 1,3-pentadiene proceeded in a fashion similar to those with
butadiene to give the [2 +
4] cycloadducts in high yields. The reactions of
1a,b with 2,3-dimethylbutadiene and
butadiene at room temperature gave the products originated from
1,1-bis(trimethylsilyl)silacyclohexa-1,4-diene intermediates. The crystal structure of
10-adamantyl-2,3,6,7-tetramethyl-9-(trimethylsilyl)-9-silabicyclo[4.4.0]deca-2,6-diene
(6b), which was obtained from the
reaction of 1b with 2,3-dimethylbutadiene at room
temperature, was determined by a single-crystal X-ray diffraction study.