Reactivity, differing

Polymer reactivity differs from the reactivity of simple molecules in two special respects. The first of these is due to the fact that a number of weak links... 

Toluene diisoeyanate has two common isomers the 2,4- and 2,6-TDI. The most commonly supplied TDI is a combination of 80% 2,4- and 20% 2,6-TDl. A 65/35 ratio of the 2,4-/2,6-TDI is also available, as well as a 100% 2,4-TDI product. The reactivity of the two isocyanates on TDI is different. Once the first isocyanate has reacted, the second is roughly eight times less reactive [21]. TDI produces lower-viscosity prepolymers than does MDI. Pure 4,4 -MDI has a reactivity difference between the isocyanates of approximately 2/1 [22]. 

Both cis and tran -cyclohexene have been synthesized, but only one of them can be isolated. Electrophilic addition of ROH to one isomer occurs spontaneously, while addition to the other isomer occurs only in the presence of a strong acid, such as sulfuric acid. Calculate the energy of protonation for each isomer cyclohexene protonated cyclohexene, trans-cyclohexene protonated trans-cyclohexene), and identify the more reactive isomer. Also examine electrostatic potential maps. Suggest an explanation to account for both the reactivity difference and the structural changes. (See also Chapter 7, Problem 5.)... 

Atomic charge is an example of a property often used for discussing/rationalizing structural and reactivity differences. There are three commonly used methods for assigning a charge to a given atom. 

What are the reasons for the reactivity differences observed in Table 11.1 Why do some reactants appear to be much more "nucleophilic" than others The answers to these questions aren t straightforward. Part of the problem is that the term micleophilicit > is imprecise. The term is usually taken to be a measure of the affinity of a nucleophile for a carbon atom in the SN2 reaction, but the reactivity of a given nucleophile can change from one reaction to the next. The exact nucleophilicity of a species in a given reaction depends on the substrate, the solvent, and even the reactant concentrations. Detailed... 

Ualike the multiple substitutions that often occur in Friedel-Crafts alkylations, acylations never occur more than once on a ring because the product acyl-benzene is less reactive than the nonacylated starting material. We ll account for this reactivity difference in the next section. 

As a consequence of these reactivity differences, it s usually possible to convert a more reactive acid derivative into a less reactive one. Acid chlorides, foi instance, can be directly converted into anhydrides, thioesters, esters, and amides, but amides can t be directly converted into esters, thioesters, anhydrides, or acid chlorides. Remembering the reactivity order is therefore a way tc keep track of a large number of reactions (Figure 21.2). Another consequence, a noted previously, is that only acyl phosphates, thioesters, esters, and amides are... 

Studies of chlorination and bromination of 2//-cyclopenta[reactivity differences dependent on substituents and halogenation conditions. In monochlorination the unsubstituted compound was more reactive than its 2-methyl and 2-phenyl derivatives, the reactivity ratio being 7.1 1.7 1 [78H(11)155]. Chlorination occurred most readily in the 5- and 7-positions of the cyclopentadienyl moiety, but once all three positions had been substituted, NCS attacked the methyl group... 

Another example of reactivity difference lies in the reaction with silver nitrate. Solutions of the c/s-isomer react with silver nitrate in a few hours at room temperature while the trans-isomer needs refluxing for many hours to remove all the chloride [71, 72, 74], A quantitative method for measuring concentrations of each isomer in mixtures involves reaction... 

A common reaction sequence is shown in the schemes printed above. The sulfosuccinate monoesters are produced by a two-step reaction. In the first step 1 mol of maleic anhydride is reacted with a hydroxyl group-bearing component. In the second step the monoester is reacted with sodium sulfite (or sodium bisulfite) to form the disodium alkyl sulfosuccinate. At the so-called halfester stage, there are two possibilities for an electrophilic attack [61] (Michael-type reaction) at the double bond (Scheme 6). Reactivity differences between the two vinylic carbons should be very small, so that probably an exclusive formation of one single regioisomer can be excluded. 

The thiophene ring can be elaborated using standard electrophilic, nucleophilic, and organometallic chemistry. A variety of methods have been developed to exploit the tendency for the thiophene ring (analogous to that of furan and pyrrole) to favor electrophilic substitution and metallation at its a-carbons. Substitution at the p-carbons is more challenging, but this problem can also be solved by utilizing relative reactivity differences. 

Optically active polyesters were synthesized by lipase CA-catalyzed ring-opening polymerization of racemic 4-methyl or ethyl-e-caprolactone. The (5 )-isomer was enantioselectively polymerized to produce the polyester with >95% ee. Quantitative reactivity of 4-substituted e-caprolactone using lipase CA as catalyst was analyzed. The polymerization rate decreased by a factor of 2 upon the introduction of a methyl substitutent at the 4-position. Furthermore, 4-ethyl-8-caprolactone polymerized five times slower than the 4-methyl-8-caprolactone. This reactivity difference is strongly related to the enantioselectivity. Interestingly, lipase CA displayed 5 -selectivity for 4-methyl or ethyl-8-caprolactone, and the enantioselectivity was changed to the (f )-enantiomer in the case of 4-propyl-8-caprolactone. 

Bidentate NHC-Pd complexes have been tested as hydrogenation catalysts of cyclooctene under mild conditions (room temperature, 1 atm, ethanol). The complex 22 (Fig. 2.5), featuring abnormal carbene binding from the O carbon of the imidazole heterocycles, has stronger Pd-C jj, bonds and more nucleophilic metal centre than the bound normal carbene chelate 21. The different ligand properties are reflected in the superior activity of 22 in the hydrogenation of cyclooctene at 1-2 mol% loadings under mild conditions. The exact reasons for the reactivity difference in terms of elementary reaction steps are not clearly understood [19]. 

OH must help subsequent isomerization, because ( )-30 is stable in the presence of 1, even after 2 d at 70°C. To test whether the bulk of the silyl ether protecting group was responsible for this reactivity difference, compound 32 was allowed to isomerize, forming a high yield of (ii)-33 at room temperature. In this case, heating at 70°C for 15 h does seem to lead to traces of what is tentatively identified as 34, but the second isomerization is clearly much slower than the first. Further studies are planned to elucidate the role of a hydroxyl substituent in alkene isomerization... 

On the other hand, when the competition is between a monosubstituted and a disub-stituted double bond, the inherent reactivity difference between the two double bonds overcomes reactant conformational preferences.78... 

The rates of phenylchlorocarbene have also been compared with the fluoro and bromo analogs.120 The data show slightly decreased rates in the order Br > Cl > F. The alkene reactivity difference is consistent with an electrophilic attack. These reactions have low activation barriers and the reactivity differences are dominated by entropy effects. 

There are probably several factors responsible for this reactivity difference ... 

Chemical reactivity differences may be calculated if for the transition state of a rate-determining step of a reaction a structural model can be given which is describable by a force field with known constants. We give only two examples. Schleyer and coworkers were able to interpret quantitatively a multitude of carbonium-ion reactivities (63, 111) in this way. Adams and Kovacic studied the pyrolysis of 3-homoadamantylacetate (I) at 550 °C and considered as transition state models the two bridgehead olefins II and III (112). From kinetic data they estimated II to be about 2 kcal mole-1 more favourable than III. 

Only a few results are available concerning competitive cyclopropanation of non-conjugated dienes. The case of 1,4-hexadiene72 (mixture of Z and E isomers) illustrates the reactivity difference between a monosubstituted and a 1,2-disubstituted double bond, whereas in limonene (24)47, a 1,1-disubstituted and a trisubstituted double bond compete for the carbenoid derived from ethyl diazoacetate. In both cases, the less substituted double bond reacts preferentially (Scheme 8). 

Aromatic nitrosation with nitrosonium (NO + ) cation - unlike electrophilic nitration with nitronium (NO ) cation - is restricted to very reactive (electron-rich) substrates such as phenols and anilines.241 Electrophilic nitrosation with NO+ is estimated to be about 14 orders of magnitude less effective than nitration with N02+. 242 Such an unusually low reactivity of NO+ toward aromatic donors (as compared to that of NO ) is not a result of the different electron-acceptor strengths of these cationic acceptors since their (reversible) electrochemical reduction potentials are comparable. In order to pinpoint the origin of such a reactivity difference, let us examine the nitrosation reaction in the light of the donor-acceptor association and the electron-transfer paradigm as follows. 

The quantitative treatment of the electron-transfer paradigm in Scheme l by FERET (equation (104)) is restricted to the comparative study of a series of structurally related donors (or acceptors). Under these conditions, the reactivity differences due to electronic properties inherent to the donor (or acceptor) are the dominant factors in the charge-transfer assessment, and any differences due to steric effects are considered minor. Such a situation is sufficient to demonstrate the viability of the electron-transfer paradigm to a specific type of donor acceptor behavior (e.g. aromatic substitution, olefin addition, etc.). However, a more general consideration requires that any steric effect be directly addressed. 

---