Kinetics and mechanism of the exchange interaction of trialkyloxonium salts with esters

Abstract

1. The kinetics of the exchange of triethyloxonium hexachloroantimonate with butyl acetate in nitrobenzene solution in the temperature interval 30–70°C, simulating the chain transfer in the cationic polymerization of cyclic ethers on transfer agents containing an ester functional group, was investigated. 2. A mechanism of the process, the feature of which is the formation of an intermediate complex compound of the type of an oxonium salt, which in turn is formed through a cyclic donor — acceptor transition complex, was proposed. 3. The kinetic data obtained give a direct confirmation of our earlier conclusion of an oxonium nature of the growing active centers in the cationic polymerization of cyclic ethers and other oxygen-containing heterocycles.