Reactions of (Nonafluorocyclohexen-1-yl)xenon(II) Hexafluoroarsenate with Halide Anions

The products of the reaction between the electrophilic alkenylxenonium cation [1-Xe⁺–C₆F₉] and the halide anions I^?, Br^?, Cl^? and F^? depend on the hardness of the halide anion. With the soft halides I^? and Br^? Xe(II) is formally displaced by halogen as well in basic MeCN as in superacidic (AHF¹), whereas with hard fluoride and chloride no reaction takes place in AHF. In MeCN F^? initiates the formation of alkenyl radicals, which abstract hydrogen from the solvent, whereas Cl^? exhibits borderline character: RH and RCl formation. Possible reaction paths are discussed. The reactivity of the arylxenonium cation [C₆F₅Xe]⁺ in AHF toward halide ions is reported and the relative electrophilicity of the cations [C₆F₅Xe]⁺ and [1-Xe⁺–C₆F₉] is determined by the competitive reaction with Cl^?. In addition the synthesis of cyclohexene 1-CF₃–C₆F₉ from C₆F₅CF₃ and XeF₂ is performed and its electrophilicity is compared with that of the aromatic compound C₆F₅CF₃.