Fragmentation reactions mechanism

Finally, accurate mass measurement can be used to help unravel fragmentation mechanisms. A very simple example is given in Figure 38.2. If it is supposed that accurate mass measurements were made on the two ions at 203.94381 and 77.03915, then their difference in mass (126.90466) corresponds exactly to the atomic mass of iodine, showing that this atom must have been eliminated in the fragmentation reaction. 

The probable reaction mechanism involves formation of the peroxide 55, which then fragments to give the observed products. 

Treatment of methano-dimer 28 with elemental bromine revealed a remarkable reactivity at low temperatures it proceeded quantitatively to the furano-spiro dimer 29, by analogy with the ethano-dimer 12 giving spiro dimer 9 upon oxidation. With increasing temperatures, the reaction mechanism changed, however, now affording a mixture of 5-bromo-y-tocopherol (30) and spiro dimer 9 (Fig. 6.24). Thus, the methano-dimer 28 fragmented into an a-tocopherol part, in the form of o-QM 3 that dimerized into 9, and a /-tocopherol part, which was present as the 5-bromo derivative 30 after the reaction. Thus, the overall reaction can be regarded as oxidative dealkylation. 

This chapter reviewed some of our group s contributions to the development and application of QM/MM methods specifically as applied to enzymatic reactions, including the use of sequential MD/QM methods, the use of effective fragment potentials for reaction mechanisms, the development of the new QM/MM interface in Amber, as well as the implementation and optimization of the SCC-DFTB method in the Amber program. This last implementation allows the application of advanced MD and sampling techniques available in Amber to QM/MM problems, as exemplified by the potential and free energy surface surfaces for the reaction catalyzed by the Tripanosoma cruzi enzyme /ram-sialidasc shown here. 

All these fragmentation reactions are best interpreted by a metaphosphate mechanism starting from the phosphonic dianion 142, formulated as follows ... 

Orientation of Attack and Competing Mechanisms in some other Two-Fragment Reactions... 

It provides information about the mode of fragmentation process and so becomes helpful in investigating a reaction mechanism and in tracer work. 

The focus of the next four chapters (Chapters 14-17) is mainly on the theoretical/computational aspects. Chapter 14 by T. S. Sorensen and E. C. F. Yang examines the involvement of p-hydrido cation intermediates in the context of the industrially important heptane to toluene dehydrocyclization process. Chapter 15 by P. M. Esteves et al. is devoted to theoretical studies of carbonium ions. Chapter 16 by G. L. Borosky and K. K. Laali presents a computational study on aza-PAH carbocations as models for the oxidized metabolites of Aza-PAHs. Chapter 17 by S. C. Ammal and H. Yamataka examines the borderline Beckmann rearrangement-fragmentation mechanism and explores the influence of carbocation stability on the reaction mechanism. 

The reaction mechanism of this transformation is depicted in Scheme 59 and involves activation of the O-H bond of methanol by complexation with Zi-melhoxycatecholborane. Interestingly, the reduction leads after fragmentation of the radical-ate complex to a methoxyl radical that reacts very efficiently with the li-alkylcatecholborane warranting an efficient chain process. 

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