High-Temperature Rearrangements of 2-Acylisoxazol-5(2H)-ones and Related Oxazoles.

Abstract

2-Acyl-3-arylisoxazol-5(2H)-ones give 2-alkyl(aryl)-4-aryloxazoles in good yields at 540°C under flash vacuum pyrolysis conditions, but at higher temperatures the expected oxazoles are accompanied by increasing amounts of isomeric 2,5-disubstituted oxazoles, as well as anilides and decomposition products of the 2,4-disubstituted oxazole. The rearrangement mechanisms have been studied by the use of ¹³C labelled substrates and p-substituted 3-arylisoxazolones. The 2,5-disubstituted oxazoles are considered to arise from 1H-azirines, and the anilides from the nitrone ketene isomer of the acylisoxazolone.