Water and the Huisgen Cycloaddition Reaction: A Focus on Polar Contributions to the Transition State in the Reactions of Dicyano(phthalazinium)methanide with Substituted Styrenes and Benzylidene Acetones

Synthetic and kinetic studies on the 1,3‐dipolar cycloaddition reactions of dicyano(phthalazin‐2‐ium‐2‐yl)methanide ( 1 ) with some substituted styrenes and ‘benzylidene acetones’ in MeCN and H₂O containing 10 mol‐% of MeCN are reported. The kinetic data were supported by theoretical calculations. The major products from styrenes were exo‐2‐aryl‐1,2,3,10b‐tetrahydropyrrolo2,1‐a]phthalazine‐3,3‐dicarbonitriles 3 , and, from ‘benzylidene acetones’, 1‐endo,2‐exo‐2‐acetyl‐1‐aryl‐1,2,3,10b‐tetrahydropyrrolo2,1‐a]phthalazine‐3,3‐dicarbonitriles 7 . There was no indication that the cycloadditon transition states were more polar in the aqueous environment than in MeCN.