Conjugate base mechanism

Once formed by this process, the carbene may undergo any of the normal carbene reactions (see p. 250). When the net result is substitution, this mechanism has been called the SnIcB (for conjugate base) mechanism. Though the slow step is an SnI step, the reaction is second order first order in substrate and first order in base. 

Fig. 2.12 Examples of non-linear Arrhenius (or Eyring) plots (a) 1u(A oh)7 " ) vs T for the base hydrolysis of trans-Co(en)2ClJ. Curvature may result when k, k2 and A// , not equalling A// in the conjugate-base mechanism (Sec. 4.3.4). Reprinted with permission from C. Blakeley and M. L. Tobe, J. Chem. Soc. Dalton Trans. 1775 (1987). (b) nk vs T for iron removal from C- and N-terminal monoferric transferrin (lower and upper scales respectively). Transferrin contains two iron binding sites = 35 A apart. Either of the two sites, designated C- and N-terminal, can be exclusively labelled by Fe(lll) ions and these may be removed by a strong ligand such as a catechol (see Sec. 4.11). Reprinted with permission from S. A. Kretschmar and K. N. Raymond, J. Amer. Chem. Soc. 108, 6212 (1986). (1986) American Chemical Society.

There is no reason to believe that the conjugate base mechanism does not apply with the other metal ions studied. Complexes of Cr(III) undergo base hydrolysis, but generally rate constants are lower, often 10 —10 less than for the Co(III) analog, Table 4.10. The lower reactivity appears due to both lower acidity (A"i) and lower lability of the amido species (kf) in (4.49) (provided k i can be assumed to be relatively constant). The very unreactive Rh(III) complexes are as a result of the very low reactivity of the amido species. The complexes of Ru(III) most resemble those of Co(III) but, as with Rh(III), base hydrolyses invariably takes place with complete retention of configuration. ... 

Higher rate constants for reactions of aliphatic diamines than expected has long been recognized and explained in terms of a conjugate base mechanism. 

Examine the volume profile for the base hydrolysis on the basis of a conjugate base mechanism ... 

Acid hydrolysis of an octahedral metal ion complex is typically a dissociative or SNl-type reaction. In the case of base hydrolysis, reactions tend to display SN2-type reaction mechanisms, although others take place by what is termed an SnI-conjugate base mechanism. The latter involves attack by an electrophile to abstract a proton... 

Figure F shows the conjugate base mechanism for base hydrolysis. Dr. Tobe suggests essentially that in base hydrolysis, the hydroxide ion occupies a unique position for one of several reasons. Perhaps the hydroxide ion is hydrogen bonded...

The second critical test of this conjugate base mechanism is based on the fact that this five-coordinated intermediate, if indeed it exists, would not always have to react with the solvent, though the solvent would be what it would react with under most circumstances. We have run this type of base hydrolysis in the presence of many anions of high concentration, and the only thing that we can find is the hydroxo complex so at least in water solution, water seems to be what this five-coordinated intermediate picks up. But in dimethylsulfoxide it certainly is possible to throw in various anions, and since dimethylsulfoxide is not as good as water in coordination, other nucleophiles may react. We do find in dimethylsulfoxide that a base, such as hydroxide ion, speeds up the rate of base hydrolysis but the product, instead of being a hydroxo compound, is the complex corresponding to whatever anion we have added, such as nitrite ion, azide ion, and thiocyanate ion. 

The third test of the conjugate base mechanism that we put forward was based on the idea that the first step should be written as an equilibrium, and the reaction rate should show specific hydroxide ion catalysis. If this is indeed in equilibrium, and deuterium exchange studies say that it must be, then the rate of the reaction must depend on the hydroxide ion concentration, and on nothing else. 

Dr. Halpern This could be used in stabilizing, say an activated complex. The point about the hydrolysis observation is that this refers to the octahedral complex, whereas the explanations that have been offered for the effect of amide in the conjugate base mechanism are concerned, not with weakening of the binding, but with stabilizing a five-coordinated intermediate. I wondered if the role of the hydroxide in promoting water substitution might be of the same nature. 

Conjugate-Base Mechanism in Reactions of Chromium(III) Amine... 

The conjugate-base mechanism, (55)-(57), originally proposed in 1937 (108), is now widely accepted, although there is still some fine structure to elucidate. 

The systems where fc2 fc i offer a direct demonstration of the conjugate base mechanism. In... 

Deprotonation trans to the leaving group is especially effective at promoting the dissociation step. The conjugate base mechanism cannot operate if a tertiary amine with no ionisable proton is placed trans to the leaving group as expected the rate of substitution is then slower and does not depend on [OH-]. 

The kinetics of substitution of bipy or phen into Co (467, 574), Ni (144), and Pt (697) complexes have been reported. Several studies of the hydrolysis of complexes of form [Co(III)(bipy)2XY] may be found. For both cis and trans isomers where X = Y = CY, hydrolysis is instantaneous (581), whereas for the cis isomer with X = acetate and Y = acetate or OH , reaction is very slow as a conjugate base mechanism cannot operate and the first-order reaction is therefore independent of [OH ] (124). One NO2 group in acid dependent and under acidic conditions is thought to proceed via protonation of one nitro group (289, 472). The interconversion of the cis and trans isomers, where X = N02 and Y = H2O, has an overall rate constant equal to + A [H+], implying reactions for both OH and... 

Other cases in which second-order kinetics seemed to require an associative mechanism have subsequently been found to have a conjugate base mechanism (called S ICB, for substitution, nucleophilic, unimolecular, conjugate base in Ingold s notation ). These reactions depend on amine, ammine, or aqua ligands that can lose protons to form amido or hydroxo species that are then more likely to lose one of the other ligands. If the structure allows it, the ligand Irons to the amido or hydroxo group is frequently the one lost. 

Additional evidence for the conjugate base mechanism has been provided by several related studies ... 

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