The hydrolyses of benzamides, methylbenzimidatium ions, and lactams in aqueous sulfuric acid. The excess acidity method in the determination of reaction mechanisms

Abstract

The excess acidity method has been applied to hydrolysis rate data for a number of benzamides, methylbenzimidatium ions, and lactams, obtained as a function of sulfuric acid concentration and temperature. All of the substrates studied except β-propiolactam (8) and methyl-2,6-dimethylbenzimidatium ion (7) were found to follow the AOT2 mechanism at all acidities. The excess acidity method provided considerable mechanistic detail; in dilute acid the transition state contains O-protonated (or methylated) substrate and three water molecules (large negative ΔS≠), but in more concentrated solutions a one-water-molecule mechanism takes over (smaller negative ΔS≠). In strong acid bisulfate ion acts as the nucleophile (positive ΔS≠). N-protonated intermediates are not involved for "normal" substrates, being observed in this work only for 8, which follows the AND1 pathway. Observed differences between benzamide and methylbenzimidatium ion (4) hydrolyses are due to their differing activity coefficient behaviour, the mechanism being the same for both. The hydrolysis of 7 involves a one-water-molecule SN2 displacement at the O-methyl group. Comparison with 7 shows that this displacement is not likely to occur under the reaction conditions for 4; however, for the N-methyl and N,N-dimethyl derivatives studied it is probably an important reaction pathway. A comprehensive mechanistic framework for amide hydrolyses in strong acid media is given.