Reactivity effects thermodynamic acidity

Inverting the orientation of the C4-N3 imine unit of a 2,3,1-diheterabotine gives a boron heterocycle with a markedly different chemical reactivity. In effect, the weakly basic oxime- or hydrazone-type imine nitrogen in the 2,3,1-diheteraborine is replaced by a much more basic imidate- or amidine-type imine nitrogen in the 2,4,1-diheteraborine. Likely, the Lewis acid tendency of the boron is enhanced by the ready protonation of this basic N4, and the formation of a stable borate-based zwitterion becomes thermodynamically favored. 

A carbocation is strongly stabilized by an X substituent (Figure 7.1a) through a -type interaction which also involves partial delocalization of the nonbonded electron pair of X to the formally electron-deficient center. At the same time, the LUMO is elevated, reducing the reactivity of the electron-deficient center toward attack by nucleophiles. The effects of substitution are cumulative. Thus, the more X -type substituents there are, the more thermodynamically stable is the cation and the less reactive it is as a Lewis acid. As an extreme example, guanidinium ion, which may be written as [C(NH2)3]+, is stable in water. Species of the type [— ( ) ]1 are common intermediates in acyl hydrolysis reactions. Even cations stabilized by fluorine have been reported and recently studied theoretically [127]. 

Formylation of the less reactive phenol and anisole with CO in HF-BF3 was found to require at least stoichiometric amount of the acid for effective transformation (50 equiv. of HF, 2 equiv. of BF3, 50 bar CO, 45°C).445 Conversion increases with increasing reaction time but results in decreasing paralortho ratios suggesting a change from kinetic control to thermodynamic control and the reversibility of formylation. Furthermore, the amount of byproducts (mainly diphenylmethane derivatives) originating from reactions between substrates and products also increases. Additional studies in ionic liquids showed that imidazolium cations with increased chain lengths—for example, l-octyl-3-methylimidazolium salts—are effective in the formylation process. This was attributed to the enhanced solubility of CO in the ionic liquid medium. Tris(dichloromethyl)amine, triformamide, and tris (diformylamino)methane have recently been applied in the formylation of activated aromatic compounds in the presence of triflic acid at low temperature (— 10 to 20°C) albeit yields are moderate.446... 

Poe and co-workers have extensively studied the thermodynamics, kinetics and the trans effect in the reactivity of such complexes.623-634 635 638,64Cl-650-653 The thermodynamics of the successive anations of [Rh(en)2X(H20)]"+ by halogens suggests that the Rh center is a marginally soft acid, and that its softness is increased by the coordination of a soft base (such as I- ) in a position trans to the reaction site a halide ligand weakens the metal-ligand bond trans to itself, and an I- causes a more dramatic weakening than a Br-, which has more effect than a coordinated q-.634,638-640 The spectrophotometrically obtained thermodynamic parameters are summarized in Table 38. 

In 2005, the Michael addition of thiols to enones was added to the list of reversible reactions compatible with the concept of DCC (Fig. 6d). Shi and Greaney investigated the reactivity of glutathione (GSH) toward a series of ethacrynic acid (EA) derivatives in a mixture of DMSO and water at pH 8 [51]. A DCL of six GSH-EA derivatives, products of the Michael addition, was generated which proved responsive to changes in pH. Thermodynamic equilibrium was typically attained after 3 h. Acidification to pH 4 has the immediate effect of switching off the Michael addition and therefore represents a practical way to freeze the equilibrium before analyzing the composition of the DCL. 

A subsequent study ° from the Arnold group showed an intriguing stereoelectronic effect in oxidative benzylic carbon-hydrogen bond cleavage reactions of substrates 8 and 9 (Scheme 3.7). In this study, electron transfer reactions were conducted in the presence of a nonnucleophilic base. Radical cation formation also weakens benzylic carbon-hydrogen bonds, thereby enhancing their acidity. Deprotonation of benzylic hydrogens yields benzylic radicals that can be reduced by the radical anion of dicyanobenzene to form benzylic anions that will be protonated by solvent. This sequence of oxidation, deprotonation, reduction, and protonation provides a sequence by which epimerization can be effected at the benzylic center. In this study, tram isomer 10 showed no propensity to isomerize to cis isomer 11 (equation 1 in Scheme 3.7), but 11 readily converted to 10 (equation 2 in Scheme 3.7). The reactions were repeated in deuterated solvents to assure that these observations resulted from kinetic rather than thermodynamic factors. Trans isomer 9 showed no incorporation of deuterium (equation 3 in Scheme 3.7) whereas cis isomer 11 showed complete deuterium incorporation. The authors attributed this difference in reactivity to... 

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