Some Irradiation Experiments with 2, 1‐Benzisothiazoles
2, 1‐Benzisothiazole (1) on irradiation with a mercury high‐pressure lamp in benzene/diethylamine yields, after acetylation, 2‐acetylamino‐benzaldehyde (3; Scheme 1). Similarly, irradiation of 3‐chloro‐2, 1‐benzisothiazole (2) in benzene/diethylamine leads to a mixture of 3‐dimethylamino‐2, 1‐benzisothiazole (6a) and N, N‐diethyl‐thioanthranilamide (7a; Scheme 2). Benzisothiazole 6a, on irradiation, is not transformed into 7a. On the other hand, when 2 is irradiated in methanol a mixture of 3‐methoxy‐2, 1‐benzisothiazole (4a) and methyl anthranilate (5a; Scheme 2) is obtained. In this case, 4a on irradiation in methanol or ethanol also yields 5a. No exchange of the methoxy group in 4a is observed when the irradiation is performed in ethanolic solution. Thus, 2, 1‐benzisothiazoles 1, 2 and 4a react photochemically by N,S‐bond cleavage and hydrogen‐atom abstraction from the solvent (Scheme 3). 3‐Chloro‐2, 1‐benzisothiazole (2) shows a second photoreaction, i.e. nucleophilic exchange of the chloro substituent by methanol or diethyl amine. The latter reaction can also be observed thermally, e.g. in boiling methanol in the presence of methoxide ions.