Gas chromatographic analysis of the thermal and photochemical reaction products in diethyl ether solutions of nitrogen oxides

Summary When dissolved in diethyl ether, nitrogen dioxide reacts with the solvent, slowly at room temperature, more rapidly on heating of UV irradiation. A complex mixture of products is formed in which further changes are observed after prolonged storge: these are less pronounced if the unreacted nitrogen oxides are removed. A gas chromatographic method was applied for the identification of the majority of products. Irradiation does not change significantly the qualitative and quantitative composition of the reaction products. The reaction is thus the so-called photo-induced process [ΔG<0]. Preliminary suggestions are made concerning the reaction mechanism.     

Kinetics of the grignard reaction with silanes in diethyl ether and ether-toluene mixtures

Kinetics of the reactions of butylmagnesium chloride and phenylmagnesium bromide with tetraethoxysilane and methyltrichlorosilane was investigated in diethyl ether and diethyl ether-toluene mixtures. Replacement of ether by toluene significantly accelerates the reaction with alkoxysilanes, while no effect was found for the reaction with chlorosilanes. We established that the reaction with alkoxysilanes consists of replacement of a donor molecule at the magnesium center by the silane followed by subsequent rearrangement of the complex to products through a four-center transition state. Chlorosilanes react differently without solvent molecule replacement but also via a four-center transition state. Large negative activation entropies are consistent with formation of cyclic transition states. Small activation enthalpy values together with remarkable exothermicity point to early transition states of the reactions.     

Pericyclic reaction of ketenes with cascade reaction products of pyridine N-oxides and dipolarophiles. X-ray structures of the adducts and formation mechanism

The structures of the adducts derived from the reactions of substituted ketenes with dihydropyridine derivatives have been clarified by single crystal X-ray analyses and the formation mechanism is discussed on the basis of the reaction-path calculations by semiempirical and density functional theory (DFT) molecular orbital methods.     

Phase separation of methylalumoxane with diethyl ether

After the addition of diethylether to a solution of methylalumoxane in toluene, phase separation can be observed. The investigation of several phase separation experiments led to an idea of the possible composition of methylalumoxane that could be consisting of a basic element and differently associated trimethylaluminium. Investigations of the system methylalumoxane–diethylether–trimethylaluminium show that diethylether is stronger complexed at methylalumoxane than with trimethylaluminium. A second model of the structure of methylalumoxane allows an attempt to explain the phenomenum of phase separation.     

Mechanisms and kinetics of noncatalytic ether reaction in supercritical water. 1. Proton-transferred fragmentation of diethyl ether to acetaldehyde in competition with hydrolysis

Noncatalytic reaction pathways and rates of diethyl ether in supercritical water are determined in a quartz capillary by observing the liquid- and gas-phase 1H and 13C NMR spectra. The reaction is investigated at two concentrations (0.1 and 0.5 M) in supercritical water at 400 degrees C and over a water-density range of 0.2-0.6 g/cm3, and in subcritical water at 300 and 350 degrees C. The neat reaction (in the absence of solvent) is also studied for comparison at 0.1 M and 400 degrees C. The ether is found to decompose through (i) the proton-transferred fragmentation to ethane and acetaldehyde and (ii) the hydrolysis to ethanol. Acetaldehyde from reaction (i) is consecutively subjected to the unimolecular and bimolecular redox reactions: (iii) the unimolecular proton-transferred decarbonylation forming methane and carbon monoxide, (iv) the bimolecular self-disproportionation producing ethanol and acetic acid, and (v) the bimolecular cross-disproportionation yielding ethanol and carbonic acid. Reactions (ii), (iv), and (v) proceed only in the presence of hot water. Ethanol is produced through the two types of disproportionations and the hydrolysis. The proton-transferred fragmentation is the characteristic reaction at high temperatures and is much more important than the hydrolysis at densities below 0.5 g/cm3. The proton-transferred fragmentation of ether and the decarbonylation of aldehyde are slightly suppressed by the presence of water. The hydrolysis is markedly accelerated by increasing the water density: the rate constant at 400 degrees C is 2.5 x 10(-7) s(-1) at 0.2 g/cm3 and 1.7 x 10(-5) s(-1) at 0.6 g/cm3. The hydrolysis becomes more important in the ether reaction than the proton-transferred fragmentation at 0.6 g/cm3. In subcritical water, the hydrolysis path is dominant at 300 degrees C (0.71 g/cm3), whereas it becomes less important at 350 degrees C (0.57 g/cm3). Acetic acid generated by the self-disproportionation autocatalyzes the hydrolysis at a higher concentration. Thus, the pathway preference can be controlled by the water density, reaction temperature, and initial concentration of diethyl ether.     

Activation of C-O and C-C bonds and formation of novel HAlOH-ether complexes: an EPR study of the reaction of ground-state Al atoms with methylethyl ether and diethyl ether

Reaction mixtures, containing Al atoms and methylethyl ether (MEE) or diethyl ether (DEE) in an adamantane matrix, were prepared with the aid of a metal-atom reactor known as a rotating cryostat. The EPR spectra of the resulting products were recorded from 77-260 K, at 10 K intervals. Al atoms were found to insert into methyl-O, ethyl-O, and C-C bonds to form CH(3)AlOCH(2)CH(3), CH(3)OAlCH(2)CH(3), and CH(3)OCH(2)AlCH(3), respectively, in the case of MEE while DEE produced CH(3)CH(2)AlOCH(2)CH(3) and CH(3)AlCH(2)OCH(2)CH(3), respectively. From the intensity of the transition lines attributed to the Al atom C-O insertion products of MEE, insertion into the methyl-O bond is preferred. The Al hyperfine interaction (hfi) extracted from the EPR spectra of the C-O insertion products was greater than that of the C-C insertion products, that is, 5.4% greater for the DEE system and 7% greater for the MEE system. The increase in Al hfi is thought to arise from the increased electron-withdrawing ability of the substituents bonded to Al. Besides HAlOH, resulting from the reaction of Al atoms with adventitious water, novel mixed HAlOH:MEE and HAlOH:DEE complexes were identified with the aid of isotopic studies involving H(2)(17)O and D(2)O. The Al and H hfi of HAlOH were found to decrease upon complex formation. These findings are consistent with the nuclear hfi calculated using a density functional theory (DFT) method with close agreement between theory and experiment occurring at the B3LYP level using a 6-311+G(2df,p) basis set.     

The reaction of diethyl oxalate with some azolidones

The condensation of thiazolidine-2, 4-dione, rhodanine, isorhodanine, 2-thiohydantoin, and pseudothiohydantoin with diethyl oxalate has given products which are azolidone-5-glyoxalic acids or their esters. In these compounds, the glyoxalic acid residue is readily replaced under the action of diazonium salts, aromatic nitroso compounds, and aromatic aldehydes with the formation of 5-arylazo-, 5-arylimino-, and 5-arylideneazolidones. 5-Arylidenerhodanines are also formed from 5-isopropylidene-and 5-(-acetyl--methylethylidene)rhodanines by their reaction with aromatic aldehydes and ketones.     

The reaction of diethyl oxalate with some azolidones

The condensation of thiazolidine-2, 4-dione, rhodanine, isorhodanine, 2-thiohydantoin, and pseudothiohydantoin with diethyl oxalate has given products which are azolidone-5-glyoxalic acids or their esters. In these compounds, the glyoxalic acid residue is readily replaced under the action of diazonium salts, aromatic nitroso compounds, and aromatic aldehydes with the formation of 5-arylazo-, 5-arylimino-, and 5-arylideneazolidones. 5-Arylidenerhodanines are also formed from 5-isopropylidene-and 5-(β-acetyl-α-methylethylidene)rhodanines by their reaction with aromatic aldehydes and ketones.     

Kinetics of the reactions of the hydroxyl radical with dimethyl ether and diethyl ether

Absolute rate coefficients for the reactions of the hydroxyl radical with dimethyl ether (k₁) and diethyl ether (k₂) were measured over the temperature range 295–442 K. The rate coefficient data, in the units cm³ molecule^?1 s^?1, were fitted to the Arrhenius equations k₁ (T) = (1.04 ± 0.10) × 10^?11 exp[?(739 ± 67 cal mol^?1)/RT] and k₂(T) = (9.13 ± 0.35) × 10^?12 exp[+(228 ± 27 kcal mol^?1)/RT], respectively, in which the stated error limits are 2σ values. Our results are compared with those of previous studies of hydrogen-atom abstraction from saturated hydrocarbons by OH. Correlations between measured reaction-rate coefficients and C? H bond-dissociation energies are discussed.     

Unprecedented copper(I)-catalyzed photochemical reaction of diethyl ether with vicinal diols and ketals

A novel Cu(I)-catalyzed photochemical reaction of diethyl ether with vicinal diols and their ketals is reported. The most remarkable feature is the transformation of 1,2-diols and their ketals to acetals of acetaldehyde under totally neutral condition without using acetaldehyde.     

Oxidation mechanism of diethyl ether: a complex process for a simple molecule

A large number of organic compounds, such as ethers, spontaneously form unstable peroxides through a self-propagating process of autoxidation (peroxidation). Although the hazards of organic peroxides are well known, the oxidation mechanisms of peroxidizable compounds like ethers reported in the literature are vague and often based on old experiments, carried out in very different conditions (e.g. atmospheric, combustion). With the aim to (partially) fill the lack of information, in this paper we present an extensive Density Functional Theory (DFT) study of autoxidation reaction of diethyl ether (DEE), a chemical that is largely used as solvent in laboratories, and which is considered to be responsible for various accidents. The aim of the work is to investigate the most probable reaction paths involved in the autoxidation process and to identify all potential hazardous intermediates, such as peroxides. Beyond the determination of a complex oxidation mechanism for such a simple molecule, our results suggest that the two main reaction channels open in solution are the direct decomposition (β-scission) of DEE radical issued of the initiation step and the isomerization of the peroxy radical formed upon oxygen attack (DEEOO˙). A simple kinetic evaluation of these two competing reaction channels hints that radical isomerization may play an unexpectedly important role in the global DEE oxidation process. Finally industrial hazards could be related to the hydroperoxide formation and accumulation during the chain propagation step. The resulting information may contribute to the understanding of the accidental risks associated with the use of diethyl ether.     

Distribution of iodine in the systems iodine-water-chloroform (diethyl ether) and iodine-potassium iodide-water-chloroform (diethyl ether)

The partition coefficients of iodine in the systems iodine-water-chloroform (diethyl ether) and iodine-potassium iodide-water-chloroform (diethyl ether) were found by the distribution method at 15–35°C. The stability constants of triiodide ion and the enthalpy and entropy of the reaction of its formation were calculated.     

Kinetics and mechanism of urethane formation catalyzed by organotin compounds. I. The reaction of phenyl isocyanate with methanol in dibutyl ether under the action of dibutyltin diacetate

The kinetics of the dibutyltin diacetate (DBTDA) catalyzed reaction of phenyl isocyanate with methanol in dibutyl ether at 25°C were studied by monitoring the rate of change in the absorbance of the reaction mixture at 281.6 nm. The rate equation was The value of k was calculated at 0.96 liter/(mole sec). In addition, it was ascertained that protons behave like extremely strong inhibitors for the catalyzed reaction. On the basis of these data a mechanism for urethane formation is proposed. The subsequent reaction steps are (1) complexation of methanol to DBTDA, (2) dissociation of the complex into a proton and an anion of composition {(n-C₄H₉)₂Sn(OCOCH₃)₂(OCH₃)}^-, (3) insertion of the isocyanate into the tin-alkoxy bond (the rate-determining step), and (4) methanolysis of the urethane precursor formed with simultaneous regeneration of the anion. With this mechanism it is possible to explain the observed kinetics as well as the deviations that occur in the rate expression if strong acids are added to the reaction mixture. The latter effect is caused by a shift in the equilibrium that describes the dissociation of the complex into ions. The retardation of the reaction by weak acids like acetic acid is caused by complexation of DBTDA by the acid.     

The reaction of pyrite with diphenyl ether

Diphenyl ether is converted into diphenyl sulfide (largely), dibenzofuran, phenoxybiphenyls, diphenoxybiphenyls, and several other sulfur- containing compounds by reaction with pyrite at 350–360°.     

Reaction of dicarbomethoxycarbene with quadricyclane

Dicarbomethoxycarbene reacts with quadricyclane to give mainly 3,3-dicarbomethoxy-$\text{exo}$-tricyclo[3.2.1.0^2,4]oct-6-ene. Although this is the same major product as formed by reaction of the carbene with norbornadiene, it is shown that reaction with quadricyclane is direct and does not involve prior isomerization to the diene.