The development of catalytic nucleophilic substitution reactions: challenges, progress and future directions

Historical perspective
In 1896, the German chemist Paul Walden discovered that he could interconvert pure enantiomeric (+) and (-) malic acids through a series of reactions. This conversion suggested the involvement of optical inversion during the substitution reaction. Further, in 1930, Sir Christopher Ingold described for the first time two different forms of nucleophilic substitution reactions, which are known as SN1 (nucleophilic substitution unimolecular) and SN2 (nucleophilic substitution...

Nucleophilic acyl substitution is an important class of substitution reactions involving a nucleophile and an acyl compound, such as carboxylic acids and their derivatives. In these reactions, the leaving group attached to the acyl group is substituted by a nucleophile. The general mechanism proceeds via two steps.

Simple aryl halides do not react with nucleophiles. However, nucleophilic aromatic substitutions can be forced under certain conditions, such as high temperatures or strong bases. The mechanism of substitution under such conditions involves the highly unstable and reactive benzyne intermediate. Benzyne contains equivalent carbon centers at both ends of the triple bond, each of which is equally susceptible to nucleophilic attack. This 50–50 distribution of products is...

Nucleophilic substitution in aromatic compounds is feasible in substrates bearing strong electron-withdrawing substituents positioned ortho or para to the leaving group. The reaction proceeds via two steps: the addition of the nucleophile and the elimination of the leaving group.
The reaction begins with an attack of the nucleophile on the carbon that holds the leaving group. This results in the delocalization of the π electrons over the ring carbons. The resonance interaction between...

Nucleophilic substitution in α-halocarbonyl compounds can be achieved via an SN2 pathway. The reaction in α-haloketones is generally carried out with less basic nucleophiles. The use of strong basic nucleophiles leads to the generation of α-haloenolate ions, which often participate in other side reactions.

Kinetic Studies and Significance
In a chemical reaction, a relationship exists between the concentration of reactants and the rate at which the reaction proceeds. The study to measure this relationship is known as the kinetics of a chemical reaction. Kinetic studies are used to deduce the rate law of a chemical reaction, which provides information about the species involved during the transition state of the rate-determining step. Thus, kinetic studies help to derive the mechanism of a...