Nucleophilic substitution rates

According to this equilibrium argument, the matched S-carbonate B-C-S should give a better branch to linear (B/L) ratio and enantiomeric excess if the nucleophilic substitution rate prior to Jt-allyl Mo conversion from complex A to B is increased, (see Table 2.7) For example, when the reaction was run at a higher concentration, [Malonate]0 0.6M rather than the typical -0.07 M, the ee of the product increases to 97% from 92%. 

Elliott, S. M., and F. S. Rowland, "Nucleophilic Substitution Rates and Solubilities for Methyl Halides in Seawater, Geophys. Res. Lett., 20, 1043-1046(1993). 

The enhanced nucleophilicity of weakly solvated fluoride ions, solubilized in non-polar solvents as their alkali metal salts by [18]crown-6, has been studied. The wide range of SN2 reactions possible with this system is illustrated in Table 3. Under equivalent conditions in the absence of crown ether no substitution occurs. Similar effects are seen with many nucleophiles which, even if soluble in the solvent employed, show increased nucleophilic substitution rates in the presence of crown ethers (B-78MI52104). However, the monocyclic crown compound exposes the cation on two sides to approach by the counteranion (see Figures lb, c and d for illustrations of this effect in the crystalline state). The resultant ion pairs that form in non-polar solvents reduce the reactivity of the anion. 

The answer is A. Among alkyl halides, alkyl fluorides have the lowest nucleophilic substitution rate. The fastest are alkyl iodides, followed by alkyl bromides and alkyl chlorides. 

Bromide ion forms a bond to the primary carbon by pushing off a water molecule This step IS bimolecular because it involves both bromide and heptyloxonium ion Step 2 IS slower than the proton transfer m step 1 so it is rate determining Using Ingold s ter mmology we classify nucleophilic substitutions that have a bimolecular rate determining step by the mechanistic symbol Sn2... 

Among alkyl halides alkyl iodides undergo nucleophilic substitution at the fastest rate alkyl fluorides the slowest... 

Recall that the term kinetics refers to how the rate of a reaction varies with changes m concentration Consider the nucleophilic substitution m which sodium hydroxide reacts with methyl bromide to form methyl alcohol and sodium bromide... 

We saw m Section 8 2 that the rate of nucleophilic substitution depends strongly on the leaving group—alkyl iodides are the most reactive alkyl fluorides the least In the next section we 11 see that the structure of the alkyl group can have an even greater effect... 

There are very large differences m the rates at which the various kinds of alkyl halides— methyl primary secondary or tertiary—undergo nucleophilic substitution As Table 8 2 shows for the reaction of a series of alkyl bromides... 

The reaction occurs in two stages Only the first stage involves nucleophilic substitution It IS the rate determining step... 

The major effect of the solvent is on the rate of nucleophilic substitution not on what the products are Thus we need to consider two related questions... 

The large rate enhancements observed for bimolecular nucleophilic substitutions m polai aprotic solvents are used to advantage m synthetic applications An example can be seen m the preparation of alkyl cyanides (mtiiles) by the reaction of sodium cyanide with alkyl halides... 

Unlike elimination and nucleophilic substitution reactions foimation of oigano lithium compounds does not require that the halogen be bonded to sp hybndized carbon Compounds such as vinyl halides and aiyl halides m which the halogen is bonded to sp hybndized carbon react m the same way as alkyl halides but at somewhat slowei rates... 

Nucleophilic substitution by azide ion on an alkyl halide (Sections 8 1 8 13) Azide ion IS a very good nucleophile and reacts with primary and secondary alkyl halides to give alkyl azides Phase transfer cata lysts accelerate the rate of reaction... 

Noticeably absent from Table 23 3 are nucleophilic substitutions We have so far seen no nucleophilic substitution reactions of aryl halides m this text Chlorobenzene for example is essentially inert to aqueous sodium hydroxide at room temperature Reac tion temperatures over 300°C are required for nucleophilic substitution to proceed at a reasonable rate... 

Substitution nucleophilic unimolecular(SNl) mechanism (Sec tions 4 9 and 8 8) Mechanism for nucleophilic substitution charactenzed by a two step process The first step is rate determining and is the ionization of an alkyl halide to a carbocation and a halide ion... 

Monomer Reactivity. The poly(amic acid) groups are formed by nucleophilic substitution by an amino group at a carbonyl carbon of an anhydride group. Therefore, the electrophilicity of the dianhydride is expected to be one of the most important parameters used to determine the reaction rate. There is a close relationship between the reaction rates and the electron affinities, of dianhydrides (12). These were independendy deterrnined by polarography. Stmctures and electron affinities of various dianhydrides are shown in Table 1. 

Delignification Chemistty. The chemical mechanism of sulfite delignification is not fully understood. However, the chemistry of model compounds has been studied extensively, and attempts have been made to correlate the results with observations on the rates and conditions of delignification (61). The initial reaction is sulfonation of the aUphatic side chain, which occurs almost exclusively at the a-carbon by a nucleophilic substitution. The substitution displaces either a hydroxy or alkoxy group ... 

The ionization mechanism for nucleophilic substitution proceeds by rate-determining heterolytic dissociation of the reactant to a tricoordinate carbocation (also sometimes referred to as a carbonium ion or carbenium ion f and the leaving group. This dissociation is followed by rapid combination of the highly electrophilic carbocation with a Lewis base (nucleophile) present in the medium. A two-dimensional potential energy diagram representing this process for a neutral reactant and anionic nucleophile is shown in Fig. 

The term nucleophilicity refers to the effect of a Lewis base on the rate of a nucleophilic substitution reaction and may be contrasted with basicity, which is defined in terms of the position of an equilibrium reaction with a proton or some other acid. Nucleophilicity is used to describe trends in the kinetic aspects of substitution reactions. The relative nucleophilicity of a given species may be different toward various reactants, and it has not been possible to devise an absolute scale of nucleophilicity. We need to gain some impression of the structural features that govern nucleophilicity and to understand the relationship between nucleophilicity and basicity. ... 

Examples of effects of reactant stmcture on the rate of nucleophilic substitution reactions have appeared in the preceding sections of this chapter. The general trends of reactivity of primaiy, secondary, and tertiaiy systems and the special reactivity of allylic and benzylic systems have been discussed in other contexts. This section will emphasize the role that steric effects can pl in nucleophilic substitution reactions. 

In addition to steric effects, there are other important substituent effects which determine both the rate and mechanism of nucleophilic substitution reactions. It was... 

A classic example of neighboring-group participation involves the solvolysis of compounds in which an acetoxy substituent is present next to a carbon that is undergoing nucleophilic substitution. For example, the rates of solvolysis of the cis and trans isomers of 2-acetoxycyclohexyl p-toluenesulfonate differ by a factor of about 670, the trans compound being the more reactive one ... 

The relative solvolysis rates in 50% ethanol—water of four isomeric p-bromobenze-nesulfonates are given below. R and T give an identical product mixture comprised of V and W, whereas S gives X and Y. Analyze these data in terms of possible participation of the oxygen atom in nucleophilic substitution. 

Kinetic studies have shown that the enolate and phosphorus nucleophiles all react at about the same rate. This suggests that the only step directly involving the nucleophile (step 2 of the propagation sequence) occurs at essentially the diffusion-controlled rate so that there is little selectivity among the individual nucleophiles. The synthetic potential of the reaction lies in the fact that other substituents which activate the halide to substitution are not required in this reaction, in contrast to aromatic nucleophilic substitution which proceeds by an addition-elimination mechanism (see Seetion 10.5). 

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