Dediazoniations of Arene Diazonium Ions in Homogenous Solution. Part IV: Change-over from a heterolytic to a homolytic mechanism in 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol pyridine mixtures

There are only two dediazoniation products of benzenediazonium tetrafluoroborate in 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol (TFE), namely phenyl 2,2,2-trifluoroethyl ether ( 1 ) and fluorobenzene ( 2 ). The reaction kinetics are strictly first-order with respect to the diazonium salt. The addition of increasing amounts of pyridine to the system results in a gradual decrease in the yields of 1 and 2 and an increase in the yields of the homolytically formed products, benzene ( 3 ), biphenyl ( 4 ), isomeric phenylpyridines ( 5 ) and diazo tar ( 6 ). The reaction kinetics show that the rate of dediazoniation of the benzene diazonium salt increases with increasing amounts of pyridine. The reaction with added pyridine is no longer first-order with respect to the diazonium ion. The product analyses and the kinetic data are consistent with the view that in pure TFE this diazonium salt decomposes completely by a heterolytic mechanism. The addition of pyridine brings about a competitive homolytic mechanism which becomes increasingly dominant as the concentration of pyridine increases.