QUINONE OXIMES AND NITROSOARENOLS

Quinone oximes and nitrosoarenols are related as tautomers, i.e. by the transfer of a proton from an oxygen at one end of the molecule to that at the other (equation 37). While both members of a given pair of so-related isomers can be discussed separately (see, e.g., our earlier reviews on nitroso compounds and phenols ) there are no calorimetric measurements on the two forms separately and so discussions have admittedly been inclusive—or very often sometimes, evasive—as to the proper description of these compounds. Indeed, while quantitative discussions of tautomer stabilities have been conducted for condensed phase and gaseous acetylacetone and ethyl acetoacetate, there are no definitive studies for any pair of quinone oximes and nitrosoarenols. In any case. Table 4 summarizes the enthalpy of formation data for these pairs of species. 

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