Dediazoniation of Arenediazonium Ions in Homogeneous Solutions. Part XVI. Kinetics and mechanisms of dediazoniation of p-chlorobenzenediazonium tetrafluoroborate in weakly alkaline aqueous solutions under nitrogen gas

The kinetics of reactions of p-chlorobenzenediazonium ions in aqueous buffer solutions (pH 9.0–10.6) under N₂ (< 5 ppb of O₂) have been measured between 20 and 50°C. The formation of trans-diazotate is first-order with respect to the concentration of hydroxyl ions and to the equilibrium concentration of diazonium ions, if the diazonium ion?cis-diazotate equilibrium is considered as a fast prior equilibrium. This indicates that the p-chlorobenzenediazonium ion, in contrast to all previous investigations with the p-nitrobenzenediazonium ion and benzenediazonium ions carrying similar substituents with a ?M effect, rearranges from the cis- to the trans-configuration as diazohydroxide and not as diazotate. The formation of trans-diazotate is catalyzed by carbonate and inhibited by hydrogen carbonate ions; mechanisms of these catalyses are discussed, and the solvent isotope effect K_H2O/K_D2O measured by an ¹H-NMR. technique reported. The kinetics of the dediazoniations can be analyzed as a mixture of two reactions, a relatively fast first reaction, reaction A, which is responsible for about 5% of the total reaction, and a second reaction F. Both are first-order with respect to diazonium ion; reaction A is also first-order in hydroxyl ions. There are some indications that reaction A corresponds to the hydrolysis of the diazonium ion to give eventually amine and nitrite ions. Reaction F shows a complex dependence on hydroxyl ions; it is related to the homolytic dediazoniation.