Flash photolytic generation and study of p-quinone methide in aqueous solution. An estimate of rate and equilibrium constants for heterolysis of the carbon-bromine bond in p-hydroxybenzyl bromide

Flash photolysis of p-hydroxybenzyl acetate in aqueous perchloric acid solution and formic acid, acetic acid, biphosphate ion, and tris(hydroxymethyl)methylammonium ion buffers produced p-quinone methide as a short-lived species that underwent hydration to p-hydroxybenzyl alcohol in hydronium ion catalyzed (k(H(+)) = 5.28 x 10(4) M(-1) s(-1)) and uncatalyzed (k(uc) = 3.33 s(-1)) processes. The inverse nature of the solvent isotope effect on the hydronium ion-catalyzed reaction, k(H(+))/k(D(+)) = 0.41, indicates that this process occurs by rapid and reversible protonation of the quinone methide on its carbonyl carbon atom, followed by rate-determining capture of the p-hydroxybenzyl carbocation so produced by water, while the magnitude of the rate constant on the uncatalyzed process indicates that this reaction occurs by simple nucleophilic addition of water to the methylene group of the quinone methide. p-Quinone methide also underwent hydronium ion-catalyzed and uncatalyzed nucleophilic addition reactions with chloride ion, bromide ion, thiocyanate ion, and thiourea. The solvent isotope effects on the hydronium ion-catalyzed processes again indicate that these reactions occurred by preequilibrium mechanisms involving a p-hydroxybenzyl carbocation intermediate, and assignment of a diffusion-controlled value to the rate constant for reaction of this cation with thiocyanate ion led to K(SH) = 110 M as the acidity constant of oxygen-protonated p-quinone methide. In a certain perchloric acid concentration range, the bromide ion reaction became biphasic, and least-squares analysis of the kinetic data using a double-exponential function provided k(Br(-)) = 3.8 x 10(8) M(-1) s(-1) as the rate constant for nucleophilic capture of the p-hydroxybenzyl carbocation by bromide ion, k(ionz) = 8.5 x 10(2) s(-1) for ionization of the carbon-bromine bond of p-hydroxybenzyl bromide, and K = 4.5 x 10(5) M(-1) as the equilibrium constant for the carbocation-bromide ion combination reaction, all in aqueous solution at 25 degrees C. Comparisons are made of the reactivity of p-quinone methide with p-quinone alpha,alpha-bis(trifluoromethyl)methide as well as p-quinone methide with o-quinone methide.     

Flash photolytic generation of ortho-quinone methide in aqueous solution and study of its chemistry in that medium

Flash photolysis of o-hydroxybenzyl alcohol, o-hydroxybenzyl p-cyanophenyl ether, and (o-hydroxybenzyl)trimethylammonium iodide in aqueous perchloric acid and sodium hydroxide solutions, and in acetic acid and biphosphate ion buffers, produced o-quinone methide as a short-lived transient species that underwent hydration back to benzyl alcohol in hydrogen-ion catalyzed (k(H+) = 8.4 x 10(5) M(-1) s(-1)) and hydroxide-ion catalyzed (k(HO)- = 3.0 x 10(4) M(-1) s(-1)) reactions as well as an uncatalyzed (k(UC) = 2.6 x 10(2) s(-1)) process. The hydrogen-ion catalyzed reaction gave the solvent isotope effect k(H+)/k(D)+ = 0.42, whose inverse nature indicates that this process occurs by rapid and reversible equilibrium protonation of the carbonyl oxygen atom of the quinone methide, followed by rate-determining capture of the carbocation so produced by water. The magnitude of the rate constant of the uncatalyzed reaction, on the other hand, indicates that this process occurs by simple nucleophilic addition of water to the methylene group of the quinone methide. Decay of the quinone methide is also accelerated by acetic acid buffers through both acid- and base-catalyzed pathways, and quantitative analysis of the reaction products formed in these solutions shows that this acceleration is caused by nucleophilic reactions of acetate ion rather than by acetate ion assisted hydration. Bromide and thiocyanate ions also accelerate decay of the quinone methide through both hydrogen-ion catalyzed and uncatalyzed pathways, and the inverse nature of solvent isotope effects on the hydrogen-ion catalyzed reactions shows that these reactions also occur by rapid equilibrium protonation of the quinone methide carbonyl oxygen followed by rate-determining nucleophilic capture of the ensuing carbocation. Assignment of an encounter-controlled value to the rate constant for the rate-determining step of the thiocyanate reaction leads to pK(a) = -1.7 for the acidity constant of the carbonyl-protonated quinone methide.     

Kinetics and mechanism of hydration of o-thioquinone methide in aqueous solution. Rate-determining protonation of sulfur

o-Thioquinone methide, 2, was generated in aqueous solution by flash photolysis of benzothiete, 1, and rates of hydration of this quinone methide to o-mercaptobenzyl alcohol, 3, were measured in perchloric acid solutions, using H2O and D2O as the solvent, and also in acetic acid and tris(hydroxymethyl)methylammonium ion buffers, using H2O as the solvent. The rate profiles constructed from these data show hydronium-ion-catalyzed and uncatalyzed hydration reaction regions, just like the rate profiles based on literature data for hydration of the oxygen analogue, o-quinone methide, of the presently examined substrate. Solvent isotope effects on hydronium-ion catalysis of hydration for the two substrates, however, are quite different: k(H)/k(D) = 0.42 for the oxygen quinone methide, whereas k(H)/k(D) = 1.66 for the sulfur substrate. The inverse nature (k(H)/k(D) < 1) of the isotope effect in the oxygen system indicates that this reaction occurs by a preequilibrium proton-transfer reaction mechanism, with protonation of the substrate on its oxygen atom being fast and reversible and capture of the benzyl-type carbocationic intermediate so formed being rate-determining. The normal direction (k(H)/k(D) > 1) of the isotope effect in the sulfur system, on the other hand, suggests that protonation of the substrate on its sulfur atom is in this case rate-determining, with carbocation capture a fast following step. A semiquantitative argument supporting this hypothesis is presented.     

醌型木素模型物的光学特性

为探索醌型木素化学结构与颜色的关系,以五种醌型木素模型物2-甲氧基-1,4-苯醌(I)、1,2-苯醌(II)、4-亚烯丙基-2-甲氧基-2,5-环己二烯酮(亚甲基醌)(III)、5-甲氧基-1,4-苯醌-2-氧负离子(IV)和5-甲基-1,4-苯醌-2-氧负离子(V)作为纸浆中醌型木素发色体的代表,在B3LYP/6-311++G(2d,p)水平上获得了它们在乙醇中的稳定基态构型,采用含时密度泛函理论(TD-DFT)在同等水平上计算了其在乙醇溶液中的电子光谱,并分析了它们在可见光范围内的吸收.结果发现:五种模型物在可见光范围内的吸收均源于电子的π→π*跃迁,它们的最大吸收波长顺序依次为IIIIIIIVV,吸光系数顺序依次为IVIVIIIII;漂白过程中生成的醌氧负离子以及邻醌类模型物具有中等大小的吸光系数(ε=1978-3197),吸收波长较长(445.47-552.36 nm),是漂白后纸浆具有颜色的重要原因.对醌类模型物吸收波长较小(414.91 nm),吸光系数大小为中等(ε=2094),亚甲基醌类模型物虽然吸光系数大(ε=31935),但吸收波长较小(407.90 nm),二者对漂白后纸浆的颜色影响较小.     

Addition Mechanisms of Phenol toward Formaldehyde under Acidic Condition： a Theoretical Investigation

The reaction mechanisms of phenol with formaldehyde in the first and second addition at the ortho- and para-position in acid solution were theoretically investigated at the PW91/DNP level with solvent effects included. The reaction of phenol with protonated methanediol firstly forms an adduct intermediate, via a SN2 mechanism with a water molecule as the leaving group. From the adduct intermediate, there are two reaction channels involving a proton transfer to form the addition products. One is that a proton directly transfers via a four-membered ring transition state with a notable energy barrier (Four-member mechanism). Another mechanism involving a water molecule as catalyst to mediate the proton transfer (WCP mechanism), is a barrierless process, indicating that the formation of the adduct intermediate, the first reaction step, is rate-limiting. The reaction products are free hydroxymethyl phenols and/or hydroxybenzy carbocation (HOC6H4CH2+) which plays an important role in the following formation of methylene and methylene ether linkages. The second addition reactions between formaldehyde and hydroxymethyl phenol at all possible reaction sites of the phenol ring in acid solution were also investigated and discussed.     

Electrophilicity of aromatic triflones in sigma-complexation processes

The kinetics of sigma-complexation of 2,6-bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)-4-nitroanisole (4) have been investigated over a large pH range of 2-15.68 in methanol. Two competitive processes have been identified with the initial addition of MeO(-) at the unsubstituted 3-position of 4 to give a 1,3-dimethoxy adduct (4b-Me) and a subsequent and slow conversion of this species into the 1,1-dimethoxy isomer (4a-Me). Both 4a-Me and 4b-Me are more stable than the related adducts of 2,6-dinitro-4-trifluromethanesulfonylanisole, i.e.5a-Me and 5b-Me, and 2,4,6-trinitroanisole, i.e.6a-Me and 6b-Me, the latter compound being a conventional reference aromatic electrophile in Meisenheimer complex chemistry. The high thermodynamic stability of 4a-Me (pK(a) = 10.48) and 4b-Me (pK(a) = 12.23) relative to 5a-Me (pK(a) = 10.68) and 6a-Me (pK(a) = 12.56) or 5b-Me (pK(a) = 15.38) and 6b-Me (pK(a) = 16.46), is shown to derive from an especially high capacity of a para or an ortho SO(2)CF(3) group to stabilize a negative charge through Fpi-type polarization effects. From the kinetic data, it appears that the contribution of a methanol pathway to the formation of 4a-Me is much weaker than that found to operate in the formation of the 1,1-complex 5a-Me of 2,6-dinitro-4-trifluromethanesulfonylanisole, the experimental evidence suggesting that the reactivity of 4 and 5 is located just beyond the region defining the boundary between super- and normal-electrophilicity in methanol. Comparison of our results with available literature data show that this boundary corresponds to a pK(MeOH)(a) value of approximately 10, in agreement with our previous finding of a very effective solvent contribution to the sigma-complexation of 1,3,5-tris(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)benzene (13; pK(MeOH)(a) = 9.12) in methanol. Taking advantage of our observation that pK(MeOH)(a) and pK(H(2)O)(a) values for sigma-complexation at unsubstituted ring positions are related by a nice linear correlation, an approximate ranking of the electrophilicity of our aromatic triflones on the E scale developed by Mayr (Acc. Chem. Res. 2003, 36, 66) can be made.     

Decomposition of 2-(1-hydroxybenzyl)thiamin. Ruling out stepwise cationic fragmentation

[reaction: see text] The rapid fragmentation of 2-(1-hydroxybenzyl)thiamin (1) is initiated by transfer of a proton from C2alpha to give an enamine. The subsequent irreversible process can be written as a concerted (or stepwise) rearrangement involving migration of the hydroxyl hydrogen to the methylene bridge. An attractive alternative is internal addition of C2alpha to the pyrimidine, generating a carbocation. However, addition of azide to the reaction solution, which could trap the carbocation, has no effect on the rate or products of reaction.     

Formation and stability of enolates of acetamide and acetate anion: an Eigen plot for proton transfer at alpha-carbonyl carbon

Second-order rate constants were determined in D(2)O for deprotonation of acetamide, N,N-dimethylacetamide, and acetate anion by deuterioxide ion and for deprotonation of acetamide by quinuclidine. The values of k(B) = 4.8 x 10(-8) M(-1) s(-1) for deprotonation of acetamide by quinuclidine (pK(BH) = 11.5) and k(BH) = 2-5 x 10(9) M(-1) s(-1) for the encounter-limited reverse protonation of the enolate by protonated quinuclidine give pK(a)(C) = 28.4 for ionization of acetamide as a carbon acid. The limiting value of k(HOH) = 1 x 10(11) s(-1) for protonation of the enolate of acetate anion by solvent water and k(HO) = 3.5 x 10(-9) M(-1) s(-1) for deprotonation of acetate anion by HO(-) give pK(a)(C) approximately 33.5 for acetate anion. The change in the rate-limiting step from chemical proton transfer to solvent reorganization results in a downward break in the slope of the plot of log k(HO) against carbon acid pK(a) for deprotonation of a wide range of neutral alpha-carbonyl carbon acids by hydroxide ion, from -0.40 to -1.0. Good estimates are reported for the stabilization of the carbonyl group relative to the enol tautomer by electron donation from alpha-SEt, alpha-OMe, alpha-NH(2), and alpha-O(-) substituents. The alpha-NH(2) and alpha-OMe groups show similar stabilizing interactions with the carbonyl group, while the interaction of alpha-O(-) is only 3.4 kcal/mol more stabilizing than for alpha-OH. We propose that destabilization of the enolate intermediates of enzymatic reactions results in an increasing recruitment of metal ions by the enzyme to provide electrophilic catalysis of enolate formation.     

Surprising acid/base and ion-sequestration chemistry of Sn9(4-): HSn9(3-), Ni@HSn9(3-), and the Sn9(3-) ion revisited

K(4)Sn(9) dissolves in ethylenediamine (en) to give equilibrium mixtures of the diamagnetic HSn(9)(3-) ion along with K(x)Sn(9)((4-x)-) ion pairs, where x = 0, 1, 2, 3. The HSn(9)(3-) cluster is formed from the deprotonation of the en solvent and is the conjugate acid of Sn(9)(4-). DFT studies show that the structure is quite similar to the known isoelectronic RSn(9)(3-) ions (e.g., R = i-Pr). The hydrogen atom of HSn(9)(3-) (δ = 6.18 ppm) rapidly migrates among all nine Sn atoms in an intramolecular fashion; the Sn(9) core is also highly dynamic on the NMR time scale. The HSn(9)(3-) cluster reacts with Ni(cod)(2) to give the Ni@HSn(9)(3-) ion containing a hydridic hydrogen (δ = -28.3 ppm) that also scrambles across the Sn(9) cluster. The Sn(9)(4-) ion competes effectively with 2,2,2-crypt for binding K(+) in en solutions, and the pK(a) of HSn(9)(3-) is similar to that of en (i.e., Sn(9)(4-) is a very strong Br?nsted base with a pK(b) comparable to that of the NH(2)CH(2)CH(2)NH(-) anion). Competition studies show that the HSn(9)(3-) ? Sn(9)(4-) + H(+) equilibrium is fully reversible. The HSn(9)(3-) anion is present in significant concentrations in en solutions containing 2,2,2-crypt, yet it has gone undetected for over 30 years.     

Synthesis of (+/-)-brazilin using IBX

[reaction: see text] A short synthesis of (+/-)-brazilin is reported. This synthesis uses several interesting and underutilized transformations including a regioselective dirhodium-catalyzed aryl C-H insertion, a regioselective IBX phenol --> o-quinone oxidation, a tautomerization of an o-quinone to a p-quinone methide, and an intramolecular aryl cyclization with a p-quinone methide.     

Dual reactivity of hydroxy- and methoxy- substituted o-quinone methides in aqueous solutions: hydration versus tautomerization

4-Hydroxy-6-methylene-2,4-cyclohexadien-1-one (1) and 4-methoxy-6-methylene-2,4-cyclohexadien-1-one (2) were generated by efficient (Φ = 0.3) photodehydration of 2-(hydroxymethyl)benzene-1,4-diol (3a) and 2-(hydroxymethyl)-4-methoxyphenol (4a), respectively. o-Quinone methides 1 and 2 can be quantitatively trapped as Diels-Alder adducts with ethyl vinyl ether or intercepted by good nucleophiles, such as azide ion (k(N3)(1) = 3.15 × 10(4) M(-1) s(-1) and k(N3)(2) = 3.30 × 10(4) M(-1) s(-1)). In aqueous solution, o-quinone methide 2 rapidly adds water to regenerate starting material (τ(H(2)O)(2) = 7.8 ms at 25 °C). This reaction is catalyzed by specific acid (k(H(+))(2) = 8.37 × 10(3) s(-1) M(-1)) and specific base (k(OH(-))(2) = 1.08 × 10(4) s(-1) M(-1)) but shows no significant general acid/base catalysis. In sharp contrast, o-quinone methide 1 decays (τ(H(2)O)(1) = 3.3 ms at 25 °C) via two competing pathways: nucleophilic hydration to form starting material 3a and tautomerization to produce methyl-p-benzoquinone. The disappearance of 1 shows not only specific acid (k(H(+))(1) = 3.30 × 10(4) s(-1) M(-1)) and specific base catalysis (k(OH(-))(1) = 3.51 × 10(4) s(-1) M(-1)) but pronounced catalysis by general acids and bases as well. The o-quinone methides 1 and 2 were also generated by the photolysis of 2-(ethoxymethyl)benzene-1,4-diol (3b) and 2-(ethoxymethyl)-4-methoxyphenol (4b), as well as from (2,5-dihydroxy-1-phenyl)methyl- (3c) and (2-hydroxy-5-methoxy-1-phenyl)methyltrimethylammonium iodides (4c). Short-lived (τ(25°)(C) ≈ 20 μs) precursors of o-quinone methides 1 and 2 were detected in the laser flash photolysis of 3a,b and 4a,b. On the basis of their reactivity, benzoxete structures have been assigned to these intermediates.     

Flash vacuum pyrolysis of methoxy-substituted lignin model compounds

The flash vacuum pyrolysis (FVP) of methoxy-substituted beta-O-4 lignin model compounds has been studied at 500 degrees C to provide mechanistic insight into the primary reaction pathways that occur under conditions of fast pyrolysis. FVP of PhCH(2)CH(2)OPh (PPE), a model of the dominant beta-O-4 linkage in lignin, proceeds by C-O and C-C cleavage, in a 37:1 ratio, to produce styrene plus phenol as the dominant products and minor amounts of toluene, bibenzyl, and benzaldehyde. From the deuterium isotope effect in the FVP of PhCD(2)CH(2)OPh, it was shown that C-O cleavage occurs by homolysis and by 1,2-elimination in a ratio of 1.4:1, respectively. Methoxy substituents enhance the homolysis of the beta-O-4 linkage, relative to PPE, in o-CH(3)O-C(6)H(4)OCH(2)CH(2)Ph (o-CH(3)O-PPE) and (o-CH(3)O)(2)-C(6)H(3)OCH(2)CH(2)Ph ((o-CH(3)O)(2)-PPE) by a factor of 7.4 and 21, respectively. The methoxy-substituted phenoxy radicals undergo a complex series of reactions, which are dominated by 1,5-, 1,6-, and 1,4-intramolecular hydrogen abstraction, rearrangement, and beta-scission reactions. In the FVP of o-CH(3)O-PPE, the dominant product, salicylaldehyde, forms from the methoxyphenoxy radical by a 1,5-hydrogen shift to form 2-hydroxyphenoxymethyl radical, 1,2-phenyl shift, and beta-scission of a hydrogen atom. The 2-hydroxyphenoxymethyl radical can also cleave to form formaldehyde and phenol in which the ratio of 1, 2-phenyl shift to beta-scission is ca. 4:1. In the FVP of o-CH(3)O-PPE and (o-CH(3)O)(2)-PPE, products (ca. 20 mol %) are also formed by C-O homolysis of the methoxy group. The resulting phenoxy radicals undergo 1,5- and 1,6-hydrogen shifts in a ratio of ca. 2:1 to the aliphatic or benzylic carbon, respectively, of the phenethyl chain. In the FVP of (o-CH(3)O)(2)-PPE, o-cresol was the dominant product. It was formed by decomposition of 2-hydroxy-3-hydroxymethylbenzaldehyde and 2-hydroxybenzyl alcohol, which are formed from a complex series of reactions from the 2, 6-dimethoxyphenoxy radical. The key step in this reaction sequence was the rapid 1,5-hydrogen shift from 2-hydroxy-3-methoxybenzyloxy radical to 2-hydroxymethyl-6-methoxyphenoxy radical before beta-scission of a hydrogen atom to give the substituted benzaldehyde. The 2-hydroxybenzyl alcohols rapidly decompose under the reaction conditions to o-benzoquinone methide and pick up hydrogen from the reactor walls to form o-cresol.     

Carbocation-forming reactions in dimethyl sulfoxide

Mesylate derivatives of 3-aryl-3-hydroxy-beta-lactams and thiolactams react in DMSO-d(6) by first-order processes to give alcohol products. Substituent effect studies implicate carbocation intermediates (ion-pairs) that are captured by DMSO-d(6) to give transient oxosulfonium ions. Rapid reaction of the oxosulfonium ions with trace amounts of water leads to the alcohol product and regenerates DMSO-d(6). H(2)(17)O labeling studies show that (17)O is incorporated into the DMSO. The mesylate derivatives of endo- and exo-2-hydroxy-2-phenylbicyclo[2.2.1]heptan-3-one also react in DMSO-d(6) to give the alcohol products. Ion-pair intermediates that capture DMSO giving unstable oxosulfonium ions are again proposed. Exo-2-phenyl-endo-bicyclo[2.2.1]heptyl trifluoroacetate readily eliminates trifluoroacetic acid in DMSO-d(6) via a cationic mechanism involving loss of the endo-trifluoroacetate leaving group as well as an exo-hydrogen. The O-methyl oxime derivative of alpha-chloro-alpha,alpha-diphenylacetophenone reacts in DMSO-d(6) to give 1-methoxy-2,3-diphenylindole, a product derived from cyclization of a cationic intermediate. A common ion rate suppression provides further evidence for a cationic mechanism. The triflate derivative of pivaloin reacts by a cationic mechanism in DMSO-d(6) to give rearranged products. The rate is even faster than in highly ionizing solvents such as trifluoroethanol or trifluoroacetic acid. 1-Adamantyl mesylate reacts in DMSO-d(6) by a first-order process (Y(OMs) = -4.00) to give a long-lived oxosulfonium ion, 1-Ad-OS(CD(3))(2)(+), which can be characterized spectroscopically. This oxosulfonium ion reacts only slowly with water at elevated temperatures to give 1-adamantanol. DMSO is therefore a viable solvent for k(s), k(C), and k(Delta) cationic processes.     

Flash photolytic generation of o-quinone alpha-phenylmethide and o-quinone alpha-(p-anisyl)methide in aqueous solution and investigation of their reactions in that medium. Saturation of acid-catalyzed hydration.

o-quinone alpha-phenylmethide was generated as a short-lived transient species in aqueous solution by flash photolysis of o-hydroxy-alpha-phenylbenzyl alcohol, and its rate of decay was measured in HClO4 and NaOH solutions as well as in CH3CO2H, H2PO4-, and HCO3- buffers. These data show that hydration of this quinone methide back to its benzyl alcohol precursor occurs by acid-, base-, and uncatalyzed routes. The acid-catalyzed reaction gives the solvent isotope effect kH+/kD+ = 0.34, whose inverse nature indicates that this reaction occurs via rapid preequilibrium protonation of the quinone methide on its carbonyl oxygen atom followed by rate-determining capture of the ensuing carbocationic intermediate by water, a conclusion supported by the saturation of acid catalysis in concentrated HClO4 solution. o-quinone alpha-(p-anisyl)methide was also generated by flash photolysis of the corresponding benzyl alcohol and of the p-cyanophenol ether of this alcohol as well, and its rate of decay was measured in HClO4 and NaOH solutions and in HCO2H, CH3CO2H, HN3, CF3CH2NH3+, imidazolium ion, H2PO4-, (CH2OH)3CNH3+, (CH3)3CPO3H-, and HCO3- buffers. Acid-, base-, and uncatalyzed hydration reaction routes were again found, and solvent isotope effects as well as saturation of acid catalysis, this time in dilute HClO4, confirmed a preequilibrium mechanism for the acid-catalyzed reaction. Analysis of the buffer data gave buffer-base rate constants that did not conform to the Br?nsted relation, consistent with the expected nucleophilic nature of the buffer reactions.     

Comparison of oxygen and sulfur effects on keto-enol chemistry in benzolactone systems: benzo[b]-2,3-dihydrofuran-2-one and -2-thione and benzo[b]-2,3-dihydrothiophene-2-one and -2-thione

Carbon-acid ionization constants, Q(K)(a)(concentration quotient at ionic strength = 0.10 M), were determined by spectrophotometric titration in aqueous solution for benzo[b]-2,3-dihydrofuran-2-one (3, pQ(K)(a) = 11.87), benzo[b]-2,3-dihydrothiophene-2-one (2, pQ(K)(a) = 8.85), and benzo[b]-2,3-dihydrofuran-2-thione (1, pQ(K)(a) = 2.81). Rates of approach to keto-enol equilibrium were also measured for the latter two substrates in perchloric acid, sodium hydroxide, and buffer solutions, and the rate profiles constructed from these data gave the ionization constants of the enols ionizing as oxygen or sulfur acids pQ(E)(a) = 5.23 for 2 and pQ(E)(a) = 2.69 for 1. Combination of these acidity constants with the carbon-acid ionization constants according to the relationship Q(K)(a)/Q(E)(a) = K(E) then gave the keto-enol equilibrium constants pK(E) = 3.62 for 2 and pK(E) = 0.12 for 1. The fourth, all-sulfur, member of this series, benzo[b]-2,3-dihydrothiophene-2-thione (4), proved to exist solely as the enol in aqueous solution, and only the enol ionization constant pQ(E)(a) = 3.44 could be determined for this substance; the limits pK(E) < 1.3 and pQ(K)(a) < 2.1, however, could be set. The unusually high acidities and enol contents of these substances are discussed, as are also the relative values of the ketonization and enolization rate constants measured; in the latter cases, Marcus rate theory is used to determine intrinsic kinetic reactivities, free of thermodynamic effects.     

Solvation in pure liquids: what can be learned from the use of pairs of indicators?

The solvation of six solvatochromic probes in a large number of solvents (33-68) was examined at 25 degrees C. The probes employed were the following: 2,6-diphenyl-4-(2,4,6-triphenylpyridinium-1-yl) phenolate (RB); 4-[(E)2-(1-methylpyridinium-4-yl)ethenyl] phenolate, MePM; 1-methylquinolinium-8-olate, QB; 2-bromo-4-[(E)-2-(1-methylpyridinium-4-yl)ethenyl] phenolate, MePMBr, 2,6-dichloro-4-(2,4,6-triphenyl pyridinium-1-yl) phenolate (WB); and 2,6-dibromo-4-[(E)-2-(1-methylpyridinium-4-yl)ethenyl] phenolate, MePMBr(2), respectively. Of these, MePMBr is a novel compound. They can be grouped in three pairs, each with similar pK(a) in water but with different molecular properties, for example, lipophilicity and dipole moment. These pairs are formed by RB and MePM; QB and MePMBr; WB and MePMBr(2), respectively. Theoretical calculations were carried out in order to calculate their physicochemical properties including bond lengths, dihedral angles, dipole moments, and wavelength of absorption of the intramolecular charge-transfer band in four solvents, water, methanol, acetone, and DMSO, respectively. The data calculated were in excellent agreement with available experimental data, for example, bond length and dihedral angles. This gives credence to the use of the calculated properties in explaining the solvatochromic behaviors observed. The dependence of an empirical solvent polarity scale E(T)(probe) in kcal/mol on the physicochemical properties of the solvent (acidity, basicity, and dipolarity/polarizability) and those of the probes (pK(a), and dipole moment) was analyzed by using known multiparameter solvation equations. For each pair of probes, values of E(T)(probe) (for example, E(T)(MePM) versus E(T)(RB)) were found to be linearly correlated with correlation coefficients, r, between 0.9548 and 0.9860. For the mercyanine series, the values of E(T)(probe) also correlated linearly, with (r) of 0.9772 (MePMBr versus MePM) and 0.9919 (MePMBr(2) versus MePM). The response of each pair of probes (of similar pK(a)) to solvent acidity is the same, provided that solute-solvent hydrogen-bonding is not seriously affected by steric crowding (as in case of RB). We show, for the first time, that the response to solvent dipolarity/polarizability is linearly correlated to the dipole moment of the probes. The successive introduction of bromine atoms in MePM (to give MePMBr, then MePMBr(2)) leads to the following linear decrease: pK(a) in water, length of the phenolate oxygen-carbon bond, length of the central ethylenic bond, susceptibility to solvent acidity, and susceptibility to solvent dipolarity/polarizability. Thus studying the solvation of probes whose molecular structures are varied systematically produces a wealth of information on the effect of solute structure on its solvation. The results of solvation of the present probes were employed in order to test the goodness of fit of two independent sets of solvent solvatochromic parameters.     

Ionization and tautomerization of 2-nitrocyclohexanone in aqueous solution

The keto-enol tautomerism of 2-nitrocyclohexanone (2-NCH) was studied in aqueous solution under different experimental conditions. Ketonization rate constants were measured spectrophotometrically at 25 degrees C at an ionic strength of 0.4 mol dm-3 (NaCl) in diluted hydrochloric acid, in diluted sodium hydroxide, and in several buffers by using NaHSO3 as the scavenger of the keto form. A value of pK(a)(EH) = 4.78 for the enol form was obtained from the rate-pH profile of the reaction. A value of pK(a)(KH) = 5.97 for the keto form was directly obtained from the UV-vis spectra of 2-NCH recorded at different pHs. The equilibrium constant for the keto-enol tautomerism, pK(T) = -log([enol]/[ketone]) = 1.19, was obtained by combining the two pKa values (pK(T) = pK(a)(KH) - pK(a)(EH)). A comparison of these results with the corresponding values (Keefe, J. R.; Kresge, A. J. In The Chemistry of Enols; Rappoport, Z., Ed.; Wiley & Sons: New York, 1990; pp 399-480) for cyclohexanone shows the dramatic effects of an alpha-nitro substituent on the keto-enol acidities and the tautomerization constant of alicyclic ketones. Rates and equilibria were discussed in the light of the Br?nsted equation, the principle of nonperfect synchronization, and the Marcus theory. It turns out that, on passing from nitroalkanes to nitroketones, the resonance contribution to pKa and deprotonation rate decreases, being overwhelmed by steric and inductive effects.     

Total syntheses of ent-heliespirones A and C

Stereodivergent total syntheses of ent-heliespirone A and C were both completed in 11 vessels and ～24% combined overall yield (A + C). These syntheses employed an identical inverse demand Diels-Alder reaction between a surrogate for an extendedly conjugated γ-δ unsaturated ortho-quinone methide and L-lactic-acid-derived exocyclic enol ether. Novel reactions of special note include a diastereoselective reduction of a chroman spiroketal by combination of borontrifluoride etherate and triethyl silane, along with oxidative rupture of a chroman etherial ring into the corresponding p-quinone by argentic oxide (AgO). In addition, an unusual intramolecular etherification of a 3° alcohol caused by cerium ammonium nitrate was observed.     

Acid-Base Properties of the Ground and Excited States of Ruthenium(II) Bis(2,2'-bipyridine) 3-Carboxyl-2,2'-bipyridine

Acid-base properties for ruthenium(II) bis(2,2'-bipyridine) 3-carboxyl-2,2'-bipyridine reveal a ground state pK(a) of 0.82 +/- 0.07 and an excited state pK(a) of 2.31 +/- 0.05, a 1.5 pH unit increase from the ground state. The excited state pK(a) is temperature independent while the ground state pK(a)(0) increases with temperature and has DeltaH(0) and DeltaS(0) values of -990 +/- 149 cm(-)(1) and -4.57 +/- 0.48 cm(-)(1) K(-)(1), respectively. The acidic form of the complex emits at lower energy than the basic form at both 296 and 77 K. The emission energy maxima are solvent dependent and decrease in energy when the solvent changes from 4:1 (v/v) 2-MeTHF-CH(2)Cl(2) to water and when the pH decreases. Changes in excited state lifetimes with emission energy follow the energy gap law with an intercept of 49 +/- 1 and a slope of (2.11 +/- 0.09) x 10(-)(3). Emission quantum yields for protonated and deprotonated species in 4:1 (v/v) 2-MeTHF-CH(2)Cl(2) are 0.023 +/- 0.001 and 0.110 +/- 0.002, respectively. The temperature dependence of the emission lifetimes gives energy barriers of 270 cm(-)(1) for the complex in aqueous solution at pH -0.5, and 990 cm(-)(1) in aqueous solution at pH 4.5, and 1920 cm(-)(1) in 4:1 (v/v) 2-MeTHF-CH(2)Cl(2.)     

Participation of multioxidants in the pH dependence of the reactivity of ferrate(VI)

Alcohol oxidation by ferrate (FeO(4)(2)(-)) in water is investigated from B3LYP density functional theory calculations in the framework of polarizable continuum model. The oxidizing power of three species, nonprotonated, monoprotonated, and diprotonated ferrates, was evaluated. The LUMO energy levels of nonprotonated and monoprotonated ferrates are greatly reduced by solvent effects, and as a result the oxidizing power of these two species is increased enough to effectively mediate a hydrogen-atom abstraction from the C-H and O-H bonds of methanol. The oxidizing power of these oxidants increases in the order nonprotonated ferrate < monoprotonated ferrate < diprotonated ferrate. The reaction pathway is initiated by C-H bond activation, followed by the formation of a hydroxymethyl radical intermediate or an organometallic intermediate with an Fe-C bond. Kinetic aspects of this reaction are analyzed from calculated energy profiles and experimentally known pK(a) values. The pH dependence of this reaction in water is explained well in terms of a multioxidant scheme.