Kinetics and mechanism of the addition of trichloromethyl radicals to chloroethylenes. The addition to CIS-C2Cl2H2, trans-C2Cl2H2, and C2Cl3H

The addition reactions of CCl₃ radicals with cis-C₂Cl₂H₂, trans-C₂Cl₂H₂, and C₂Cl₃H in liquid cyclohexane–CCl₄ mixtures were studied between 323 and 448 K. The Arrhenius parameters of these reactions were competitively determined versus H-atom transfer from cyclohexane and addition to C₂Cl₄. The present data and the data obtained in previous liquid and gas phase studies show that the reactivities displayed in addition reactions of different radicals with chloroethylenes reflect primarily variations in activation energies rather than in A factors. The activation energies for the addition of CCl₃, CF₃, and CH₃ radicals to chloroethylenes appear, to a large extent, to be determinedby the stability of the adduct radicals. Comparison of the reactivity trends in the addition reactions of chloro- and fluoro-substitutedethylenes indicates that these two electron-withdrawing substituentshave a converse effect on the reactivity of electrophilic radicals. This behavior is ascribed to the strong mesomeric effect of vinylic chlorosubstituents.