Phenyl radicals, from pyrolysis

The fact that most alkylated benzenes show the same tendency to soot is also consistent with a mechanism that requires the presence of phenyl radicals, concentrations of acetylene that arise from the pyrolysis of the ring, and the formation of a fused-ring structure. As mentioned, acetylene is a major pyrolysis product of benzene and all alkylated aromatics. The observation that 1-methylnaphthalene is one of the most prolific sooting compounds is likely explained by the immediate presence of the naphthalene radical during pyrolysis (see Fig. 8.23). 

Z)(G-H) in benzene has not been determined directly, but has been inserted here for purposes of comparison. It may be derived from the activation energy of the pyrolysis of bromobenzene, which has been shown by Szwarc and Williams to produce phenyl radicals and bromine atoms when the reaction is carried out using the toluene carrier gas technique. Z)(C6H5 -Br) is deduced to be 70 9 kcal, whence Z)(G6H5 -H) = 101 8 kcal, if the heat of formation of bromobenzene quoted by Szwarc and Williams is known to the required accuracy. 

Transition metal phosphido clusters usually result from pyrolysis reactions in the presence of an external source of the phosphorus atom. PCI3, white phosphorus, PH3, and, more commonly, PPh3 have all been used in this respect, and it has been shown that the thermal decomposition of triphenylphosphine by successive loss of phenyl radicals can result in the formation of naked phosphorus atoms in interstitial cavities. This phosphorus metalation is thought to prevail in cluster chemistry because of the presence of several transition metal atoms neighboring the arylpho-sphine coordination site which aid the P-C bond cleavage process. 

The use and importance of aromatic compounds in fuels sharply contrasts the limited kinetic data available in the literature, regarding their combustion kinetics and reaction pathways. A number of experimental and modelling studies on benzene [153, 154, 155, 156, 157, 158], toluene [159, 160] and phenol [161] oxidation exist in the literature, but it would still be helpful to have more data on initial product and species concentration profiles to understand or evaluate important reaction paths and to validate detailed mechanisms. The above studies show that phenyl and phenoxy radicals are key intermediates in the gas phase thermal oxidation of aromatics. The formation of the phenyl radical usually involves abstraction of a strong (111 to 114 kcal mof ) aromatic—H bond by the radical pool. These abstraction reactions are often endothermic and usually involve a 6 - 8 kcal mol barrier above the endothermicity but they still occur readily under moderate or high temperature combustion or pyrolysis conditions. The phenoxy radical in aromatic oxidation can result from an exothermic process involving several steps, (i) formation of phenol by OH addition to the aromatic ring with subsequent H or R elimination from the addition site [162] (ii) the phenoxy radical is then easily formed via abstraction of the weak (ca. 86 kcal moT ) phenolic hydrogen atom. 

Extensive mechanistic studies of this cyclization reaction were carried out by Myers et al. and extended with theoretical work by Squire s et al. It is known that, in contrast to the Bergman cyclization of the ene-diyne (Chapter 4.2), this transformation proceeds as an exothermic process determined by the increased stability of a benzyl radical versus a phenyl radical. The barrier for cyclization from substrate to a diradical product is low and can further be reduced by an appropriate substitution at the allenic terminus of the substrate. The dichotomous (polar and free radical) reactivity is observed on pyrolysis in the presence of polar reactants. Both radical and polar products arise from a common intermediate, which is described as a polar diradical, a linear combination of limiting structure 7 and zwitterion 11. According to Squires, polar diradical singlet species are involved. Based on computational studies supported by experimental product distribution studies, it has been proposed that both the diradical 7 and... 

The products of the thermolysis of 3-phenyl-5-(arylamino)-l,2,4-oxadiazoles and thiazoles have been accounted for by a radical mechanism.266 Flash vacuum pyrolysis of 1,3-dithiolane-1-oxides has led to thiocarbonyl compounds, but the transformation is not general.267 hi an ongoing study of silacyclobutane pyrolysis, CASSF(4,4), MR-CI and CASSCF(4,4)+MP2 calculations using the 3-21G and 6-31G basis sets have modelled the reaction between silenes and ethylene, suggesting a cyclic transition state from which silacyclobutane or a trcins-biradical are formed.268 An AMI study of the thermolysis of 1,3,3-trinitroazacyclobutane and its derivatives has identified gem-dinitro C—N bond homolysis as the initial reaction.269 Similar AMI analysis has determined the activation energy of die formation of NCh from methyl nitrate.270 Thermal decomposition of nitromethane in a shock tube (1050-1400 K, 0.2-40 atm) was studied spectrophotometrically, allowing determination of rate constants.271... 

The corresponding hydrido/alkyl (and aryl) complexes v-[RuHR(L-L), ] (L-L = dppe, dppm, dmpe R = Me, Et, Ph) are readily prepared from m-[RuClR(L-L)2] and Li[AlH4]1659 whereas treatment of cis- or tvans-[RuCl2 (dmpe)2 ] with arene radical anions affords d.v-[RuH(f 1-aryl)(dmpe)2] (aryl = phenyl, 2-naphthyl, anthryl, phenanthryl).1389 In solution, these compounds are in tautomeric equilibria with significant concentrations of Ru° complexes (e.g. equation 148) although X-ray analysis for aryl = 2-naphthyl confirms the presence of the six-coordinate Ru" species (373) in the solid state.2459 Some reactions of (373) with various substrates to produce other hydrido complexes are shown in Scheme 74.44>24m Note that the compound of empirical formula [ Ru(dmpe)2 ] obtained by pyrolysis of [RuH(2-np)(dmpe)2] (reaction (iv) Scheme 74) is a binuclear Ru" hydrido complex, resulting from intermolecular oxidative addition of methyl groups to ruthenium.1390... 

Upon photolysis or pyrolysis of phenyl azide in the gas phase the nascent phenyl nitrene is formed with enough energy to overcome a substantial barrier and ring contract to form cyanocyclopentadiene, the lowest energy isomer of C6H5N [43], In fact laser photolysis of phenyl azide in the gas phase does not produce emission from triplet phenyl nitrene but from the cyanocyclopenadienyl radical instead. 

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