Kinetic sonication effects in aqueous acetonitrile solutions. Reaction rate levelling by ultrasound

The kinetics of the pH-independent hydrolysis of 4-methoxyphenyl dichloroacetate were investigated with and without ultrasonic irradiation in acetonitrile–water binary mixtures containing 0.008 to 35 wt.% of acetonitrile and the kinetic sonication effects (k_son/k_non) were calculated. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of the structure of the solutions were performed with ethyl acetate as the model ester. The ester is preferentially solvated by acetonitrile. The excess of acetonitrile over water in the solvation shell grows fast with an increase in the co-solvent content in the bulk solution. In parallel, the formation of a second solvation shell rich in acetonitrile takes place. Significant kinetic sonication effects for the hydrolysis were explained with facile destruction of the diffuse second solvation shell followed by a rearrangement of the remaining solvent layer under sonication. The rate levelling effect of ultrasound was discussed. In an aqueous-organic binary solvent, independent of the solvent composition, the ultrasonic irradiation evokes changes in the reaction medium which result in an almost identical solvation state of the reagent thus leading to the reaction rate levelling.