Thermal 2,5-cycloaddition of N-arylmaleimides to phenols
Abstract
Phenol undergoes thermal 2,5-cycloaddition of N-phenylmaleimide to give endo- and exo-bicyclo-octenones (3) and (4) respectively, and a homopolymer of the maleimide; use of N-(p-methoxyphenyl)maleimide minimizes polymer formation, and gives a combined cycloadduct yield of 60% in the case of p-cresol.