Enolization isotope effects

A number of studies of the acid-catalyzed mechanism of enolization have been done. The case of cyclohexanone is illustrative. The reaction is catalyzed by various carboxylic acids and substituted ammonium ions. The effectiveness of these proton donors as catalysts correlates with their pK values. When plotted according to the Bronsted catalysis law (Section 4.8), the value of the slope a is 0.74. When deuterium or tritium is introduced in the a position, there is a marked decrease in the rate of acid-catalyzed enolization h/ d 5. This kinetic isotope effect indicates that the C—H bond cleavage is part of the rate-determining step. The generally accepted mechanism for acid-catalyzed enolization pictures the rate-determining step as deprotonation of the protonated ketone ... 

The distribution of a-bromoketones formed in the reaction of acetylcyclopentane with bromine was studied as a function of deuterium substitution. On the basis of the data given below, calculate the primaiy kinetic isotope effect for enolization of... 

The first step, as we have already seen (12-3), actually consists of two steps. The second step is very similar to the first step in electrophilic addition to double bonds (p. 970). There is a great deal of evidence for this mechanism (1) the rate is first order in substrate (2) bromine does not appear in the rate expression at all, ° a fact consistent with a rate-determining first step (3) the reaction rate is the same for bromination, chlorination, and iodination under the same conditions (4) the reaction shows an isotope effect and (5) the rate of the step 2-step 3 sequence has been independently measured (by starting with the enol) and found to be very fast. With basic catalysts the mechanism may be the same as that given above (since bases also catalyze formation of the enol), or the reaction may go directly through the enolate ion without formation of the enol ... 

Kinetic data exist for all these oxidants and some are given in Table 12. The important features are (i) Ce(IV) perchlorate forms 1 1 complexes with ketones with spectroscopically determined formation constants in good agreement with kinetic values (ii) only Co(III) fails to give an appreciable primary kinetic isotope effect (Ir(IV) has yet to be examined in this respect) (/ ) the acidity dependence for Co(III) oxidation is characteristic of the oxidant and iv) in some cases [Co(III) Ce(IV) perchlorate , Mn(III) sulphate ] the rate of disappearance of ketone considerably exceeds the corresponding rate of enolisation however, with Mn(ril) pyrophosphate and Ir(IV) the rates of the two processes are identical and with Ce(IV) sulphate and V(V) the rate of enolisation of ketone exceeds its rate of oxidation. (The opposite has been stated for Ce(IV) sulphate , but this was based on an erroneous value for k(enolisation) for cyclohexanone The oxidation of acetophenone by Mn(III) acetate in acetic acid is a crucial step in the Mn(II)-catalysed autoxidation of this substrate. The rate of autoxidation equals that of enolisation, determined by isotopic exchange , under these conditions, and evidently Mn(III) attacks the enolic form. 

The main mechanistic difficulty involves Ce(IV) sulphate and V(V), which attack ketones at rates less than those of enolisation. The kinetics and relative oxidation rates are of little assistance in discriminating between attack on keto and enol forms. However, the solvent isotope effects in these oxidations are in strict accord with the measured acidity-dependences if attack had occurred on the enol then the change of solvent should have enhanced the expected koiolf HiO l y a factor of 2.5, because is favoured to such an extent in D2O as compared with H2O. No such enhancement is found and attack is, therefore, on the keto... 

Al-Soufi W, Grellmann KH, Nickel B (1991) Keto-enol tautomerization of 2-(2 -hydroxy-phenyl)benzoxazole and 2-(2 -hydroxy-4 -methylphenyl) benzoxazole in the triplet state hydrogen tunneling and isotope effects. 1. Transient absorption kinetics. J Phys Chem 95 10503-10509... 

C kinetic isotope effects (A ( C)/ ( C)) are more difficult to measure accurately. The values for a variety of metal ion-catalyzed decarboxylations of oxaloacetate (2.113) are similar (1.04-1.05). This suggests that the transition state for decarboxylation (a) involves a marked breakage of the C — C bond and (b) is similar for the various metal ions, even though enhancement rates vary widely. This apparent paradox is ascribed to an alteration of the distribution of oxaloacetate between the keto and enol forms. ... 

In the aldol-Tishchenko reaction, a lithium enolate reacts with 2 mol of aldehyde, ultimately giving, via an intramolecular hydride transfer, a hydroxy ester (51) with up to three chiral centres (R, derived from rYhIO). The kinetics of the reaction of the lithium enolate of p-(phenylsulfonyl)isobutyrophenone with benzaldehyde have been measured in THF. ° A kinetic isotope effect of fee/ o = 2.0 was found, using benzaldehyde-fil. The results and proposed mechanism, with hydride transfer rate limiting, are supported by ab initio MO calculations. 

Laser flash photolysis of phenylchlorodiazirine was used to measure the absolute rate constants for intermolecular insertion of phenylchlorocarbene into CH bonds of a variety of co-reactants. Selective stabilization of the carbene ground state by r-complexation to benzene was proposed to explain the slower insertions observed in this solvent in comparison with those in pentane. Insertion into the secondary CH bond of cyclohexane showed a primary kinetic isotope effect k ikY) of 3.8. l-Hydroxymethyl-9-fluorenylidene (79), generated by photolysis of the corresponding diazo compound, gave aldehyde (80) in benzene or acetonitrile via intramolecular H-transfer. In methanol, the major product was the ether, formed by insertion of the carbene into the MeO-H bond, and the aldehyde (80) was formed in minor amounts through H-transfer from the triplet carbene to give a triplet diradical which can relax to the enol. 

The mechanism of the aldol-Tishchenko reaction has been probed by determination of kinetics and isotope effects for formation of diol-monoester on reaction between the lithium enolate of p-(phenylsulfonyl)isobutyrophenone (LiSIBP) and two molecules of benzaldehyde. ". The results are consistent with the formation of an initial lithium aldolate (25) followed by reaction with a second aldehyde to form an acetal (26), and finally a rate-limiting intramolecular hydride transfer (Tishchenko... 

The various tautomers and rotamers of alloxan have been examined in detail by the MNDO method and it is predicted that the keto form is most important in the gas phase, although in solution the monohydroxy forms are also thought to contribute. A mass spectral study has been used to investigate the enol-keto tautomeric equilibria of a series of substituted salicylaldehyde and 2-hydroxynaphthaldehyde Schiff bases. In neutral, ethanolic solutions, the cis- and trans-tm forms of 4,5-dimethyl-2-(2 -hydroxyphenyl)imidazoles (393) and (394) have been found to exist in equilibrium in the ground state. However, in neutral aqueous solutions, the trans-eao and keto forms (394) and (395) were the only species detected. Deuterium isotope effects on... 

OTHER EXAMPLES OF KINETIC ISOTOPE EFFECTS. The power of kinetic isotope effects in enzymol-ogy is well illustrated in the work of Rose ° and Knowles deahng with hydrogen effects in proton transfer to and from carbon. Abstraction of a proton from a tetrahedral carbon is a fundamental step in many enzyme-catalyzed reactions. Intramolecular proton transfer as well as partial loss (wash-out) migrating protons have provided important clues in mechanistic investigations. Enol and enediolate formation constitute several... 

In this study, benzaldehyde and benzaldehyde-methyllithium adduct were fully optimized at HF/6-31G and their vibrational frequencies were calculated. The authors used MeLi instead of lithium pinacolone enolate, since it was assumed that the equilibrium IBs are not much different for the MeLi addition and lithium enolate addition. Dehalogena-tion and enone-isomerization probe experiments detected no evidence of a single electron transfer to occur during the course of the reaction. The primary carbonyl carbon kinetic isotope effects and chemical probe experiments led them to conclude that the reaction of lithium pinacolone enolate with benzaldehyde proceeds via a polar mechanism. 

In 1998, Hasanayn and Streitwieser reported the kinetics and isotope effects of the Aldol-Tishchenko reaction . They studied the reaction between lithium enolates of isobu-tyrophenone and two molecule of beuzaldehyde, which results iu the formation of a 1,3-diol monoester after protonation (Figure 28). They analyzed several aspects of this mechanism experimentally. Ab initio molecular orbital calculatious ou models are used to study the equilibrium and transition state structures. The spectroscopic properties of the lithium enolate of p-(phenylsulfonyl) isobutyrophenone (LiSIBP) have allowed kinetic study of the reaction. The computed equilibrium and transition state structures for the compounds in the sequence of reactions in Figure 28 are given along with the computed reaction barriers and energy in Figure 29 and Table 6. 

The excellent agreement with the experimental and calculated isotope effect (calculated for formaldehyde, 3.22, and for acetaldehyde, 3.3 experimental value 2.9) supports the computational approach. This suggests that the computed transition structure for hydride transfer in the reaction of the lithium enolate of acetone with acetaldehyde (Figure 30) is realistic. 

TABLE 6. Computed reaction and activation energies and corresponding isotope effects for the sequence of reactions between lithium vinyloxide (LiEn) and formaldehyde and between the hthium enolate of acetone (AcCH2Li) and acetaldehyde. Reproduced with permission from Reference 29. Copyright 1998 American Chemical Society... 

Reports in the literature that isolate any of these processes are rare and often require unusual conditions. For example, in addition to the oxazoI-5(4//)-one studies described above, Kemp and Rebek[27l were able to use kinetic isotope effects to distinguish the enolization mechanism from oxazol-5(4//)-one formation in a simple peptide coupling experiment. a-2H-Labeled Bz-L-Leu-OH and Z-Gly-Phe-OH were prepared and coupling reactions to H-Gly-OEt were carried out. In cases where oxazol-5(4//)-one formation is rate-determining, such as with Bz- L-Leu-OH, the isotope effect kHlkD is equal to 1 because the a-proton is not removed until after this rate-determining step. In contrast, enolization requires the direct removal of the a-proton, and the isotope effect measured for this mechanism was as high as 2.9 with Z-Gly-Phe-OH. Therefore, a measurement of the isotope... 

Among the facts supporting this mechanism (which is an A-Se2 mechanism because the substrate is protonated in the rate-determining step) are (1) lsO labeling shows that in ROCH=CH2 it is the vinyl-oxygen bond and not the RO bond that cleaves 497 (2) the reaction is subject to general acid catalysis 498 (3) there is a solvent isotope effect when D2O is used.498 Enamines are also hydrolyzed by acids (see 6-2) the mechanism is similar. Ketene dithioacetals R2C=C(SR )2 also hydrolyze by a similar mechanism, except that the initial protonation step is partially reversible.499 Furans represent a special case of enol ethers that are cleaved by acid to give 1,4 diones. Thus... 

The original experimental evidence for concerted acid-base catalysis of the mutarotation in benzene is now considered unsound133 134 and concerted acid-base catalysis has been difficult to prove for nonenzy-matic reactions in aqueous solution. However, measurements of kinetic isotope effects seem to support Swain and Brown s interpretation.135 Concerted acid-base catalysis by acetic acid and acetate ions may have been observed for the enolization of acetone136 and it may be employed by enzymes.1363... 

These enzymes do not catalyze any proton exchange at C-3 of pyruvate or at C-2 of an acyl-CoA unless the biotin is first carboxylated. This suggested that removal of the proton to the biotin oxygen and carboxylation might be synchronous. However, 13C and 2H kinetic isotope effects and studies of 3H exchange66 support the existence of a discrete enolate anion intermediate as shown in Eq. 14-11.165/67 This mechanism is also consistent with the observation that propionyl-CoA... 

Isbell and co-workers have now developed a more convenient method for measuring the primary rate of enolization that does not involve a primary isotope effect (25). The method (Scheme III) uses infrared absorption at 2.95 microns for measuring the amount of DOH formed by enolization of the deuterated sugar in alkaline D20. The rate constant, kH, is calculated from the usual first-order equation ... 

The two preceding methods have been combined to determine the tritium isotope effect. In a tritium-labeled substrate in D20, the change in infrared radiation absorption arises almost entirely from release of protons because the concentration of the tritium species in the reactant is small. Thus, the rate constant kH (determined by the change in the DOH absorption) represents release of protons. The constant kT for release of tritium to the solvent is determined from radioactivity measurements of water from the same reaction mixture. In the enolization of... 

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