The decomposition of methyl hemiacetals of benzaldehyde in aqueous solution: a study of the effect of aromatic substitution

Abstract

The acid-base catalysed decomposition of hydrates and hemiacetals of carbonyl compounds are classical examples of reactions where (slow) proton transfer is coupled with heavy atom reorganization, i.e., C—O bond breaking and solvent reorganization. We have studied the influence of m- and p-substitution in the carbonyl electrophile on the kinetics of the acid and base catalysis of the decomposition of methyl hemiacetals of benzaldehyde. The experimental data are well described by three-dimensional More O'Ferrall - Jencks energy contour diagrams according to principles developed by Jencks (the BEMA HAPOTHLE). Thus, for acid catalysis, a Cordes cross-interaction coefficient pxy' = δρ/δpKa = 0.15 indicates the coupled nature of the rate-limiting step in a class e mechanism, similar to conclusions reached from systematic substitution in the nucleophile. Our more extensive set of data for base catalysis permits a more rigorous analysis according to the BEMA HAPOTHLE. The data are consistent with a class n mechanism as also suggested earlier on the basis of substitution in the nucleophile. A slight upward curvature observed in the Hammett plots for the various catalysts is described by the direct correlation parameter py = -δρ/δσ = -0.11. This second derivative demonstrates the concerted nature of the C—O bond cleavage and O-H formation in the transition state, which changes with changing substituent. A class n mechanism for base catalysis is also supported by the observation of a Cordes cross-interaction parameter pxy = -δρ/δpKa = -δβ/δσ = 0.03, which describes the experimentally observed decrease in Hammett ρ with increasing pKa of the catalyst. This change may be rationalized by the movement of a saddle point on a diagonal reaction coordinate in the energy contour diagram, as a resultant of shifts parallel and perpendicular to the coordinate, when the energy along one side of the diagram is changed. It is concluded that observed rate changes as a result of substitution in the electrophile are consistent with and present further confirmation of earlier suggested mechanisms of hemiacetal decomposition reactions.Key words: methyl hemiacetals of benzaldehydes, acid-base catalysed breakdown, Hammett plots, More O'Ferrall - Jencks diagrams.