Dehydrohalogenation

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Dehydrohalogenation to give an alkene Synthesis of alkenes - Dehydrohalogenation.png
Dehydrohalogenation to give an alkene

In chemistry, dehydrohalogenation is an elimination reaction which removes a hydrogen halide from a substrate. The reaction is usually associated with the synthesis of alkenes, but it has wider applications.

Contents

Dehydrohalogenation from alkyl halides

Traditionally, alkyl halides are substrates for dehydrohalogenations. The alkyl halide must be able to form an alkene, thus halides having no C–H bond on an adjacent carbon are not suitable substrates. Aryl halides are also unsuitable. Upon treatment with strong base, chlorobenzene dehydrohalogenates to give phenol via a benzyne intermediate.

Base-promoted reactions to alkenes

When treated with a strong base many alkyl chlorides convert to corresponding alkene. [1] It is also called a β-elimination reaction and is a type of elimination reaction. Some prototypes are shown below:

Here ethyl chloride reacts with potassium hydroxide, typically in a solvent such as ethanol, giving ethylene. Likewise, 1-chloropropane and 2-chloropropane give propene.

Zaitsev's rule helps to predict regioselectivity for this reaction type.

In general, the reaction of a haloalkane with potassium hydroxide can compete with an SN2 nucleophilic substitution reaction by OH a strong, unhindered nucleophile. Alcohols are however generally minor products. Dehydrohalogenations often employ strong bases such as potassium tert-butoxide (K+ [CH3]3CO).

Base-promoted reactions to alkynes

Upon treatment with strong base, vicinal dihalides convert to alkynes. [2]

Thermal cracking

On an industrial scale, base-promoted dehydrohalogenations as described above are disfavored. The disposal of the alkali halide salt is problematic. Instead thermally-induced dehydrohalogenations are preferred. One example is provided by the production of vinyl chloride by heating 1,2-dichloroethane: [3]

CH2Cl-CH2Cl → CH2=CHCl + HCl

The resulting HCl can be reused in oxychlorination reaction.

Thermally induced dehydrofluorinations are employed in the production of fluoroolefins and hydrofluoroolefins. One example is the preparation of 1,2,3,3,3-pentafluoropropene from 1,1,2,3,3,3-hexafluoropropane:

CF2HCH(F)CF3 → CHF=C(F)CF3 + HF

Other dehydrohalogenations

Epoxides

Chlorohydrins, compounds with the connectivity R(HO)CH-CH(Cl)R', undergo dehydrochlorination to give epoxides. This reaction is employed industrially to produce millions of tons of propylene oxide annually from propylene chlorohydrin: [4]

CH3CH(OH)CH2Cl + KOH → CH3CH(O)CH2 + H2O + KCl

Isocyanides

The carbylamine reaction for the synthesis of isocyanides from the action of chloroform on a primary amine involves three dehydrohalogenations. The first dehydrohalogenation is the formation of dichlorocarbene:

KOH + CHCl3 → KCl + H2O + CCl2

Two successive base-mediated dehydrochlorination steps result in formation of the isocyanide. [5]

Carbylamine mechanism.png

Coordination compounds

Dehydrohalogenation is not limited to organic chemistry. Some metal-organic coordination compounds can eliminate hydrogen halides, [6] either spontaneously, [7] thermally, or by mechanochemical reaction with a solid base such as potassium hydroxide. [8]

For example, salts that contain acidic cations hydrogen bonded to halometallate anions will often undergo dehydrohalogenation reactions reversibly: [6]

[B–H]+···[X–MLn] ⇌ [B–MLn] + HX

where B is a basic ligand such as a pyridine, X is a halogen (typically chlorine or bromine), M is a metal such as cobalt, copper, zinc, palladium or platinum, and Ln are spectator ligands.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alcohol (chemistry)</span> Organic compound with at least one hydroxyl (–OH) group

In chemistry, an alcohol, is a type of organic compound that carries at least one hydroxyl functional group bound to a saturated carbon atom. Alcohols range from the simple, like methanol and ethanol, to complex, like sugars and cholesterol. The presence of an OH group strongly modifies the properties of hydrocarbons, conferring hydrophilic (water-loving) properties. The OH group provides a site at which many reactions can occur.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alkene</span> Hydrocarbon compound containing one or more C=C bonds

In organic chemistry, an alkene, or olefin, is a hydrocarbon containing a carbon–carbon double bond. The double bond may be internal or in the terminal position. Terminal alkenes are also known as α-olefins.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alkyne</span> Hydrocarbon compound containing one or more C≡C bonds

In organic chemistry, an alkyne is an unsaturated hydrocarbon containing at least one carbon—carbon triple bond. The simplest acyclic alkynes with only one triple bond and no other functional groups form a homologous series with the general chemical formula CnH2n−2. Alkynes are traditionally known as acetylenes, although the name acetylene also refers specifically to C2H2, known formally as ethyne using IUPAC nomenclature. Like other hydrocarbons, alkynes are generally hydrophobic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ether</span> Organic compounds made of alkyl/aryl groups bound to oxygen (R–O–R)

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ester</span> Compound derived from an acid

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ethylene oxide</span> Cyclic compound (C2H4O)

Ethylene oxide is an organic compound with the formula C2H4O. It is a cyclic ether and the simplest epoxide: a three-membered ring consisting of one oxygen atom and two carbon atoms. Ethylene oxide is a colorless and flammable gas with a faintly sweet odor. Because it is a strained ring, ethylene oxide easily participates in a number of addition reactions that result in ring-opening. Ethylene oxide is isomeric with acetaldehyde and with vinyl alcohol. Ethylene oxide is industrially produced by oxidation of ethylene in the presence of a silver catalyst.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Potassium permanganate</span> Chemical compound

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4
ions to give an intensely pink to purple solution.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allyl group</span> Chemical group (–CH₂–CH=CH₂)

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Cyclopropene is an organic compound with the formula C3H4. It is the simplest cycloalkene. Because the ring is highly strained, cyclopropene is difficult to prepare and highly reactive. This colorless gas has been the subject for many fundamental studies of bonding and reactivity. It does not occur naturally, but derivatives are known in some fatty acids. Derivatives of cyclopropene are used commercially to control ripening of some fruit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allyl chloride</span> Chemical compound

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hydrogen bromide</span> Chemical compound

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Propenyl</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sulfenyl chloride</span> Chemical group (R–S–Cl)

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allyl acetate</span> Chemical compound

Allyl acetate is an organic compound with formula C3H5OC(O)CH3. This colourless liquid is a precursor to especially allyl alcohol, which is a useful industrial intermediate. It is the acetate ester of allyl alcohol.

In chemistry, oxychlorination is a process for generating the equivalent of chlorine gas (Cl2) from hydrogen chloride and oxygen. This process is attractive industrially because hydrogen chloride is less expensive than chlorine.

References

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