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Mechanisms for Solvolytic Elimination and Substitution Reactions Involving Short-lived Carbocation Intermediates

Solvolysis reactions of a range of tertiary substrates in largely aqueous solvents were studied in such respects as β-deuterium kinetic isotope effects, linear free energy relationships and stereochemistry. Solvolysis of the fluorene derivatives 9-methyl–9-(2´-X-2´-propyl)fluorene (<b>1-X,</b> X = Cl, Br, OOCCF3) involves a very short-lived carbocation intermediate. The fraction of alkene is increased by addition of general bases, which can be expressed by a Brφnsted parameter β = 0.07. The kinetic deuterium isotope effects vary with solvent composition in a way which is not consistent with a common carbocation intermediate which has time to choose between dehydronation and addition of a solvent water molecule. In the absence of bases, the reaction of 4-chloro-4-(4´-nitrophenyl)pentan-2-one (<b>2-Cl</b>) proceeds through a short-lived carbocation intermediate yielding 4-(4´-nitrophenyl)-2-oxopent-4-ene (<b>2-</b><b>t</b>-ne)as the main elimination product. Addition of acetate ion and other weak bases results in the base-promoted E2 (or E1cb) reaction to give (E)-4-(4´-nitrophenyl)-2-oxopent-3-ene (<b>2-</b><b>E</b>-ne) and (Z)-4-(4´-nitrophenyl)-2-oxopent-3-ene(<b>2-</b><b>Z</b>-ne). There is no evidence for a water-promoted E2 (or E1cb) reaction. The stereochemistry studies of elimination from (R,S and S,R)-[1-(3´-fluoro)phenyl-2-methyl]cyclopentyl-p-nitrobenzoate (<b>3-PNB</b>) and its (R,R and S,S)isomer <b>3´-PNB</b> and (R,S and S,R)-[1´-(3´´-fluoro)phenyl-2´-methylcyclopentyl]-2,2,2-trifluoroacetate(<b>3-OOCCF</b><b>3</b>) exclude the concerted pericyclic elimination mechanism for formation of the alkene 1-(3´-fluoro)phenyl-2-methylcyclopentene(<b>3-</b><b>m</b>-ne). The effects of added thiocyanate ion and halide ions on the solvolysis reaction are discussed. Mass spectrometry analysis showed complete incorporation of the labeled oxygen from solvent water into the product 2-hydroxy-2-phenyl-3-butene (<b>4-OH</b>), confirming that it is the tertiary carbon-oxygen bond that is broken in the acid-catalyzed solvolysis of 2-methoxy-2-phenyl-3-butene (<b>4-OMe</b>). The mechanism for the dominant formation of the less stable <b>4-OH</b> is discussed.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:uu-2565
Date January 2002
CreatorsZeng, Xiaofeng
PublisherUppsala universitet, Avdelningen för organisk kemi, Uppsala : Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis
Source SetsDiVA Archive at Upsalla University
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeDoctoral thesis, comprehensive summary, info:eu-repo/semantics/doctoralThesis, text
Formatapplication/pdf
Rightsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
RelationComprehensive Summaries of Uppsala Dissertations from the Faculty of Science and Technology, 1104-232X ; 743

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