Conformational analysis: XIV—A1H n.m.r. conformational study of methyl substituted 2-oxo-1,3,2-dioxathians to confirm the predominance of chair forms in the trimethylene sulphite series

Seven isomeric 4,5,6-trimethyl-2-oxo-1,3,2-dioxathians, cis-4-trans-6-dimethyl-r-2-oxo-1,3,2-dioxathian and two isomeric 4,5,5,6-tetramethyl-2-oxo-1,3,2-dioxathians were prepared and their 1H n.m.r. spectra analysed. The values of the vicinal coupling constants reported earlier for the cis-4-trans-6 compound were shown to be erroneous. In all cases the values of the vicinal coupling constants (and those of the chemical shifts) are indicative of a single chair conformation or a chair-chair equilibrium, in contrast to earlier reports on the significant contribution of twist forms but in agreement with an electron diffraction study. The chair form is ≳ 31 kJ mol−1 thermochemically more stable than the twist form.