Hydrolysis of 1-(X-substituted-benzoyl)-4-aminopyridinium ions: effect of substituent X on reactivity and reaction mechanism

A kinetic study is reported for hydrolysis of 1-(X-substituted-benzoyl)-4-aminopyridinium ions 2a-i, which were generated in situ from the nucleophilic substitution reaction of 2,4-dinitrophenyl X-substituted-benzoates 1a-i with 4-aminopyridine in 80 mol% H(2)O/20 mol% DMSO at 25.0 ± 0.1 °C. The plots of pseudo-first-order rate constants k(obsd) vs. pyridine concentration are linear with a large positive intercept, indicating that the hydrolysis of 2a-i proceeds through pyridine-catalyzed and uncatalyzed pathways with the rate constant k(cat) and k(o), respectively. The Hammett plots for k(cat) and k(o) consist of two intersecting straight lines, which might be taken as evidence for a change in the rate-determining step (RDS). However, it has been proposed that the nonlinear Hammett plots are not due to a change in the RDS but are caused by stabilization of 2a-i in the ground state through a resonance interaction between the π-electron-donor substituent X and the carbonyl functionality. This is because the corresponding Yukawa-Tsuno plots exhibit excellent linear correlations with ρ(X) = 1.45 and r = 0.76 for k(cat) while ρ(X) = 1.39 and r = 0.72 for k(o). A possibility that the hydrolysis of 2a-i proceeds through a concerted mechanism has been ruled out on the basis of the large ρ(X) values. Thus, the reaction has been concluded to proceed through a stepwise mechanism in which the leaving group departs after the RDS since OH(-) is more basic and a poorer nucleofuge than 4-aminopyridine.