Very high quality video. I really like that you explain every step in detail as they are often seen as trivial when they are not. Therefore, I was able to learn a lot. Thank you and keep it up! :)
🙂 Thanks - glad you enjoyed the video. More aldol stuff in the future as I like the topic and I notice an absence of good info on the reaction on TH-cam
Great video! (As always). You seem to mention enol/aldol reactions a lot in your videos. Worked as a synthetic chemist for 2 years now and never had to do either of them
Thanks 🙂 Hmm - that is a fair point. I do like the 3D aspects of the methodology a lot, even if it's a little old school in some circumstances. Also not much out there on TH-cam on these topics so I figure I'm trying to address that too. The reactions can work really well in practice in my experience when the come along - very project dependent though.
Love when pops up a notification of a new video! Regarding the diene, I just thought of performing a Pd coupling reaction of a protected allylic alcohol and a vinylic halide derived from a Takai olefination. But as you mentioned in the video, though, some reactions might not be suitable for a multi-gram scale. Also, could you make a list (or even a shorts-like video) of recommended books for each level of synthetic organic chemistry? Thanks!
😊 cross coupling is a viable approach for sure. If making the full natural product this way I’d probably want the diene in the middle of a fragment in this case to maximise convergency. I’ve only ever done a Takai on a small scale - not massively sure what they’re like on scale but might get tricky with so much CrCl2 involved (and possible exotherms). Perhaps easier to make the E vinyl halide by hydrometallation from an alkyne.
I’ll have a think about books for a list perhaps. There comes a point where there isn’t really one comprehensive resource. A good one for extending just beyond the level of this video is to get into Classics in Total Synthesis, as it draws together lots of things in one place as a starting point.
Hi! I am currently a second year bachelor student chemistry. I really like your videos and am interested in the field of chemistry you make videos about. Can you recommend me sources that i can use to learn more about this field? This can be books for example.
Thanks 🙂 some of the stuff I’m talking about is almost deliberately stuff I know that there aren’t comprehensive single textbooks on, and so Masters level lecture notes are a good place to push yourself on these topics. The Myers ones are available for free online via their Harvard website, and Classics in Total Synthesis Book 1 are good places to start in seeing what can be done. These resources can help bridge the gap from undergrad to modern research techniques (as in the evolved and usually more selective versions of reagents that you’re probably learning about at the moment on your course).
Excellent video as always! But could you please explain why the generated methoxide at 27:10 attacks the ester carbonyl but not the β, δ-positions of the double bonds in a conjugated addition fashion?
Many thanks for the feedback 🙂 This is mainly due to methoxide being quite a hard nucleophile and attacking in a conjugate fashion being largely an orbital controlled “soft” reaction/electrophile. So there’s a mismatch as the O minus lone pairs are quite contracted.
Yes it would be but MeO- is good in this contact as the methanol solvent can dissolve both the organic substrate and the base. If using hydroxide directly, you’d probably need aqueous conditions which might not dissolve the substrate. Also the method shown is much more controllable else other reactions might occur like the higher activation energy E1CB risk. Also, methoxide is good as is it attacks the other ester at carbon 1, we wouldn’t care or know about it.
This is true and the standard work up. The iodobenzenecarboxylic acid largely can be washed away but I’ve often found some of it hangs around necessitating a column (but an easy one). Still quite a lot of waste material though regardless of oxidation state. The pyr.SO3 is a bench stable powder that’s commercially available btw, so it’s just a matter of shovelling in and keeping an eye on the exotherm with an ice bath, which is nice for bucket scale chemistry
🙂 TPAP-NMO might get a bit pricey on scale but sure there are other oxidation options. It can be a bit of more aggressive reagent than expected in practice I’ve found in practice. Should be ok with the alkyne , particularly as it’s electron poor, but would need to try it to find out
I think I would recommend the following (in order level of understanding): 1. Clayden et al “Organic Chemistry”. Was the pretty much only book I used in early undergrad and has probably had a big influence on the style of how I look at problems. 2. The Oxford Chemistry Primers series (out of print but often in uni libraries and are available as eBooks nowadays anyway. You can often pick up for cheap on eBay too). These are quite short quite reads but packed with detail. There are separate ones on different organic sub-topics. One pivotal one I think for general understanding of mechanisms is the one on Stereoelectronic Effects - it makes you look at problems in different lights and helps move away from memorisation that is often unfortunately encouraged by lecturers/teachers in many places. 3. Where this video is pitched is problem skirting into Masters level and beyond in some bits. The key transformative books for me at this time were the volumes (there’s at least 3 of them) in “classics in total synthesis” (Nicolao, Sorenson et al). You can read in like 6-page block all about a single synthetic target, and challenge yourself along the way by drawing out explanations of each step. You get a big increase in exposure to new strategies and reagents in these books, but always worth remembering that they’re largely evolved versions of reactions you’ve probably come across in previous study. Hope this helps!
@@CasualChemistry Thanks a lot for your answer! didn't know about that chemistry primers series, but seems great, too bad they don't have it on libgen :[[
Pretty ridiculous, another 2 ad breaks, not sure if you set it like this. I am pausing to do my own drawing so it may load up another ad based on the fact I was paused. Going to pass on this video.
I’m sorry this has interfered so much with the video. In Nov 2023 TH-cam took away all power from creators on what happens with adverts. If it’s hit this video badly, I’d be really grateful if you could drop TH-cam a message directly.
Jiggery-pokery‽ How do you remember all these reactions and their names‽😏 But seriously, If you don't have them all memorized, how do you keep them organized by mechanism so you can find what you need for what circumstances ? Especially when you're often using exceptions to the rules, so to speak .
To be honest I’ve got most of them memorised barring some really obscure things. I didn’t actively do it but they creep into your brain over time. I did my PhD in total synthesis where we would use literally any method we could think of when optimising so I picked up a lot of experience there trying many reactions in real life to get myself out of holes. I’ve also been teaching undergrad and postgrad chemistry for a while which reinforces them.
@@CasualChemistry there is no way I could fathom remembering all that unless it was something I did in my daily life.. and even then unlikely, you are very impressive 👌
The game changer for me was focussing on using molecular orbital theory (qualitatively) as it helps to draw out recurring patterns and let’s you predict things you haven’t necessarily seen before. The names and reaction details came more easily later, though school/undergrad education has a tendency to emphasise memorising first which I think is odd.
Definitely no need for calculus for this sort of thing. The Oxford chemistry primer on Stereoelectronic effects is pretty good for details. It’s available as an ebook (often via university site licences or similar) and these books often come up for cheap second hand on ebay
Very high quality video. I really like that you explain every step in detail as they are often seen as trivial when they are not. Therefore, I was able to learn a lot. Thank you and keep it up! :)
Thanks 🙂 I've been wanting to do a big deep dive synthesis video for some time now.
You are doing a great job - it is clear that you actually understand chemistry.
😎 Thanks for the feedback - it’s been my life for ages now and I like this TH-cam thing as a hobby
Fantastic video, thanks for the insights into some new chemistry, currently an undergrad wanting to go into synthesis/total synthesis.
Thanks for the feedback 🙂 Glad you found the video useful. I crammed this one quite full of things so hopefully there's something new for everyone.
Super cool. As a PhD student in pharmacy/med chem this is super useful. I really enjoyed every step and full explanations.
Thanks for the feedback 🙂 Glad it was useful
Such a great video, I like your special attention to the mechanistic details. Keep it up!
🙂 Thanks for the feedback. Definitely more in the pipeline when I get time to record them
Absolutely enjoy this content! Pls make more videos
Thanks 🙂 More on the way. Just finishing up my in-person teaching this week or so
Just wonderful chemistry ! I liked the explanation of the stereocontrolled aldol reaction.
🙂 Thanks - glad you enjoyed the video. More aldol stuff in the future as I like the topic and I notice an absence of good info on the reaction on TH-cam
Super cool and elegant reactions, also big thanks for explanations! They made those tricky reactions so easy to understand.
🙂 Thanks - I’m glad this came across clearly as some of the steps are a bit fiddly
High quality content again and very helpful :)
Many thanks 🙂 I wanted to try making one with an eye to the practicalities of picking synthetic routes for a change
@@CasualChemistry well done :) Better explained then any of my Profs :D
Nice 😎
Great video! (As always). You seem to mention enol/aldol reactions a lot in your videos.
Worked as a synthetic chemist for 2 years now and never had to do either of them
Thanks 🙂 Hmm - that is a fair point. I do like the 3D aspects of the methodology a lot, even if it's a little old school in some circumstances. Also not much out there on TH-cam on these topics so I figure I'm trying to address that too. The reactions can work really well in practice in my experience when the come along - very project dependent though.
dude i love your videos
Thanks 🙂
Me as an analytical chemist... Hey i made brown tar today :)
You could say I'm.. diene inside
🫠 A classic - perhaps I should have put a pun in the title... I'm sure there will be more opportunities
Love when pops up a notification of a new video! Regarding the diene, I just thought of performing a Pd coupling reaction of a protected allylic alcohol and a vinylic halide derived from a Takai olefination. But as you mentioned in the video, though, some reactions might not be suitable for a multi-gram scale.
Also, could you make a list (or even a shorts-like video) of recommended books for each level of synthetic organic chemistry? Thanks!
😊 cross coupling is a viable approach for sure. If making the full natural product this way I’d probably want the diene in the middle of a fragment in this case to maximise convergency. I’ve only ever done a Takai on a small scale - not massively sure what they’re like on scale but might get tricky with so much CrCl2 involved (and possible exotherms). Perhaps easier to make the E vinyl halide by hydrometallation from an alkyne.
I’ll have a think about books for a list perhaps. There comes a point where there isn’t really one comprehensive resource. A good one for extending just beyond the level of this video is to get into Classics in Total Synthesis, as it draws together lots of things in one place as a starting point.
Hi! I am currently a second year bachelor student chemistry. I really like your videos and am interested in the field of chemistry you make videos about. Can you recommend me sources that i can use to learn more about this field? This can be books for example.
Thanks 🙂 some of the stuff I’m talking about is almost deliberately stuff I know that there aren’t comprehensive single textbooks on, and so Masters level lecture notes are a good place to push yourself on these topics. The Myers ones are available for free online via their Harvard website, and Classics in Total Synthesis Book 1 are good places to start in seeing what can be done. These resources can help bridge the gap from undergrad to modern research techniques (as in the evolved and usually more selective versions of reagents that you’re probably learning about at the moment on your course).
@@CasualChemistry thank you very much, i think this offers me some direction
Excellent video as always! But could you please explain why the generated methoxide at 27:10 attacks the ester carbonyl but not the β, δ-positions of the double bonds in a conjugated addition fashion?
Many thanks for the feedback 🙂 This is mainly due to methoxide being quite a hard nucleophile and attacking in a conjugate fashion being largely an orbital controlled “soft” reaction/electrophile. So there’s a mismatch as the O minus lone pairs are quite contracted.
@@CasualChemistry Many thanks! Loving your videos
@CasualChemistry is it the same for HO-?
Yes it would be but MeO- is good in this contact as the methanol solvent can dissolve both the organic substrate and the base. If using hydroxide directly, you’d probably need aqueous conditions which might not dissolve the substrate. Also the method shown is much more controllable else other reactions might occur like the higher activation energy E1CB risk. Also, methoxide is good as is it attacks the other ester at carbon 1, we wouldn’t care or know about it.
Could you make video about Paterson lactate derived ketones and beta hydroxy ketones in aldol reactions?
😎 funny you say that - the lactate aldols are on my list to do. Probably not my next video but likely the one after that
@@CasualChemistry Continue your amazing videos. Just if you could upload more frequently - very meaningful content!
Fitting around the day job and my teaching side hustle is tricky at the moment but will try my best to up the pace of uploads
It is true that dmp oxidation produces IBX as by product but it could be removed very easily using na2s2o3 and nahco3.
This is true and the standard work up. The iodobenzenecarboxylic acid largely can be washed away but I’ve often found some of it hangs around necessitating a column (but an easy one). Still quite a lot of waste material though regardless of oxidation state. The pyr.SO3 is a bench stable powder that’s commercially available btw, so it’s just a matter of shovelling in and keeping an eye on the exotherm with an ice bath, which is nice for bucket scale chemistry
@@CasualChemistry what just came to my mind right now is maybe Ley-Griffith oxidation. But I have to say this video is very nice. I really enjoyed it!
🙂 TPAP-NMO might get a bit pricey on scale but sure there are other oxidation options. It can be a bit of more aggressive reagent than expected in practice I’ve found in practice. Should be ok with the alkyne , particularly as it’s electron poor, but would need to try it to find out
Would you be willing to put out an organic chemistry reading list ?
I think I would recommend the following (in order level of understanding):
1. Clayden et al “Organic Chemistry”. Was the pretty much only book I used in early undergrad and has probably had a big influence on the style of how I look at problems.
2. The Oxford Chemistry Primers series (out of print but often in uni libraries and are available as eBooks nowadays anyway. You can often pick up for cheap on eBay too). These are quite short quite reads but packed with detail. There are separate ones on different organic sub-topics. One pivotal one I think for general understanding of mechanisms is the one on Stereoelectronic Effects - it makes you look at problems in different lights and helps move away from memorisation that is often unfortunately encouraged by lecturers/teachers in many places.
3. Where this video is pitched is problem skirting into Masters level and beyond in some bits. The key transformative books for me at this time were the volumes (there’s at least 3 of them) in “classics in total synthesis” (Nicolao, Sorenson et al). You can read in like 6-page block all about a single synthetic target, and challenge yourself along the way by drawing out explanations of each step. You get a big increase in exposure to new strategies and reagents in these books, but always worth remembering that they’re largely evolved versions of reactions you’ve probably come across in previous study.
Hope this helps!
@@CasualChemistry Thanks a lot for your answer! didn't know about that chemistry primers series, but seems great, too bad they don't have it on libgen :[[
Reverse Diels-Alder?
Might be even trickier to make the starting material needed for that.
Every choice I make ends up as a mistake
Hopefully some new ones to you to find out about in the video 🙂
Great video, getting so many adverts though, breaks the flow, want to click off after the 3rd or 4th interruption.
Pretty ridiculous, another 2 ad breaks, not sure if you set it like this. I am pausing to do my own drawing so it may load up another ad based on the fact I was paused. Going to pass on this video.
I’m sorry this has interfered so much with the video. In Nov 2023 TH-cam took away all power from creators on what happens with adverts. If it’s hit this video badly, I’d be really grateful if you could drop TH-cam a message directly.
Jiggery-pokery‽ How do you remember all these reactions and their names‽😏 But seriously,
If you don't have them all memorized, how do you keep them organized by mechanism so you can find what you need for what circumstances ?
Especially when you're often using exceptions to the rules, so to speak .
To be honest I’ve got most of them memorised barring some really obscure things. I didn’t actively do it but they creep into your brain over time. I did my PhD in total synthesis where we would use literally any method we could think of when optimising so I picked up a lot of experience there trying many reactions in real life to get myself out of holes. I’ve also been teaching undergrad and postgrad chemistry for a while which reinforces them.
@@CasualChemistry there is no way I could fathom remembering all that unless it was something I did in my daily life.. and even then unlikely,
you are very impressive 👌
The game changer for me was focussing on using molecular orbital theory (qualitatively) as it helps to draw out recurring patterns and let’s you predict things you haven’t necessarily seen before. The names and reaction details came more easily later, though school/undergrad education has a tendency to emphasise memorising first which I think is odd.
@@CasualChemistry any books you would recommend? For qualitative orbital theory, hopefully not *_too_* much calculus🤓
Definitely no need for calculus for this sort of thing. The Oxford chemistry primer on Stereoelectronic effects is pretty good for details. It’s available as an ebook (often via university site licences or similar) and these books often come up for cheap second hand on ebay