Proton transfer kinetics, future

Eight generalizations are given arising from world-wide studies of proton transfer reactions in aqueous media carried out over the past twenty-five years. Future directions of research on proton transfer kinetics are predicted, and recent kinetic studies by the authors on proton transfer in nonaqueous media (methanol, acetonitrile, and benzonitrile) are reviewed. 

Table III suggests some of the proton transfer kinetic studies one is likely to hear most about in the near future. The very first entry, colloidal suspensions, is one that Professor Langford mentioned earlier in these proceedings. In the relaxation field, one of the comparatively new developments has been the measurement of kinetics of ion transfer to and from colloidal suspensions. Yasunaga at Hiroshima University is a pioneer in this type of study (20, 21, 22). His students take materials such as iron oxides that form colloidal suspensions that do not precipitate rapidly and measure the kinetics of proton transfer to the colloidal particles using relaxation techniques such as the pressure-jump method.

Table III Eight Areas for Future Research in the Study of Proton Transfer Kinetics ...

Directions for Future Work. The measurement of rates of proton transfer from a single acid to more bases differing only in thermodynamic base strength should allow the construction of BrjSnsted plots of kinetic versus thermodynamic acidity. The bases we have used at this early stage of development of the subject have involved different proton acceptor atoms and cannot be so used (although comparison of the Et N transfer rates of... 

The purpose of this review has been to illustrate and document the kinds of information about non-aqueous solvent systems which have been obtained by vibrational spectroscopy. We have seen that these include insight into intermolecular forces and structure of the pure solvents, the nature of the solvation shell around ions and their solvation numbers, the identification of ion pairs and complexes, measurement of mass law constants and their dependence on the polarity of the solvent, the detection and characterisation of the hydrogen bond and measurement of acid and base strengths. Little kinetic data have so far been obtained by Raman spectroscopy but recent progress in the study of ultra-fast proton transfer and the detection of associated ions of type [Br , (Bra)] during the bromination of acetic acid presage considerable advance in this area in the future. ... 

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