The kinetics and mechanisms of the gas phase elimination of 4-(methylthio)-1-butyl acetate and 1-chloro-4-(methylthio)-butane

The gas phase elimination of 4-(methylthio)-1-butyl acetate and 1-chloro-4-(methylthio)-butane has been investigated in a seasoned, static reaction vessel over the temperature range of 310–410°C and the pressure range of 46–193 Torr. The presence of the inhibitors propene, cyclohexene, and/or toluene had no effect on the rates. The reactions are homogeneous, unimolecular, and obey a first-order rate law. The rate coefficients are given by the following Arrhenius equations: for 4-(methylthio)-1-butyl acetate, log k₁(s^?1) = (12.32 ± 0.29) ? (192.1 ± 3.6) kJ/mol/2.303RT; for 1-chloro-4-(methylthio)-butane, log k₁(s^?1) = (12.23 ± 0.59) ? (175.7 ± 6.8) kJ/mol/2.303RT. The CH₃S substituent in 1-chloro-4-(methylthio)-butane has been found to participate in the elimination reaction, where tetrahydrothiophene and methyl chloride formation may result from an intimate ion-pair type of mechanism. The yield of a cyclic product in gas phase reactions provides additional evidence of an intimate ion pair mechanism through neighboring group participation in gas phase elimination of special types of organic halides.