Abstract
Photolysis of nitramines in a neutral solvent generated nitrogen dioxide and aminyl radicals which abstracted a hydrogen but did not add to a π-bond. In dilute acidic solution, the aminyl radicals generated from the photolysis were protonated to the corresponding aminium radicals that preferentially added to π-bonds rather than abstracted a hydrogen. However, complex mixtures of addition products were obtained when nitramines were photolysed in the presence of cyclohexene under nitrogen. The plethora of the products is believed to arise from the complex behavior of nitrogen dioxide in solution; for example, (i) nitrogen dioxide may react as O- or N-radical, (ii) nitrogen dioxide exists in equilibrium with nitrogen tetraoxide, and (iii) both oxides can react as oxidizing or radical trapping agents. Under oxygen, the oxidative addition of nitramines to cyclohexene gave 1-dialkylamino-2-nitratocyclohexenes which could be treated with lithium aluminium hydride to give good yields of the corresponding amino alcohols. The quantum yields of nitramine disappearance indicated that the photolysis followed short chain processes either in neutral or acidic conditions. The decrease in quantum yield at >2 N H2SO4 is believed to be due to a reduced reactivity of aminium radicals in a highly acidic environment. The probable mechanisms of these photolytic radical chain processes are discussed.
Published Version
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