Studies on retro-[1,4] Brook rearrangement of 3-silyl allyloxysilanes. Observation of the formation of unusual 3,3-bissilyl enols

Detailed investigations of the retro-[1,4] Brook rearrangement of 3-silyl allyloxysilanes are described. Based on control experiments and NMR studies, rationalizations are proposed for the formation of 3,3-bissilyl enols, unusual compounds that are stable to acidic hydrolysis but that can be transformed into the corresponding aldehydes under basic hydrolysis conditions. These studies further show that the 3,3-bissilyl enolates can be O-alkylated by alkyl halides with complete chemoselectivity. This reaction provides a practical entry to various 3,3-bissilyl aldehydes and enol derivatives. As a demonstration of the synthetic utility of this approach, 3,3-bissilyl aldehyde was converted into bissilyl divinyl ketone, which can undergo an SiO2-promoted Nazarov reaction to give cyclic β-silyl enone smoothly.