Hydrogen-supported biodefluorination of unsaturated perfluorinated carboxylic acids

Qiu-Jin Xu1, Xin-Rui Liu2, Matthew Sima3

  • 1State Key Laboratory of Soil Pollution Control and Safety, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China; MOE Key Lab of Environmental Remediation and Ecosystem Health, College of Environmental and Resource Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.

Related Concept Videos

Acid Halides to Carboxylic Acids: Hydrolysis01:01

Acid Halides to Carboxylic Acids: Hydrolysis

Hydrolysis of acid halides is a nucleophilic acyl substitution reaction in which acid halides react with water to give carboxylic acids. The reaction occurs readily and does not require acid or a base catalyst.
As shown below, the mechanism involves a nucleophilic attack by water at the carbonyl carbon to form a tetrahedral intermediate. This is followed by the reformation of the carbon–oxygen π bond along with the departure of a halide ion. A final proton transfer step yields carboxylic acid...
α-Halogenation of Carboxylic Acid Derivatives: Overview01:14

α-Halogenation of Carboxylic Acid Derivatives: Overview

Unlike aldehydes and ketones, carboxylic acids do not readily participate in α halogenation reactions via enols or enolate intermediates. However, α-halogenated acids are obtained through other methods. One of the approaches is the Hell–Volhard–Zelinsky (HVZ) reaction, wherein the carboxylic acid is treated with halogen in the presence of PBr3. It involves the conversion of acid to acid halide, which exists in equilibrium with its enol form. The enol attacks the electrophilic halogen to produce...
Electrophilic Aromatic Substitution: Fluorination and Iodination of Benzene01:13

Electrophilic Aromatic Substitution: Fluorination and Iodination of Benzene

Bromination and chlorination of aromatic rings by electrophilic aromatic substitution reactions are easily achieved, but fluorination and iodination are difficult to achieve. Fluorine is so reactive that its reaction with benzene is difficult to control, resulting in poor yields of monofluoroaromatic products. To address this, Selectfluor reagent is used as a fluorine source in which a fluorine atom is bonded to a positively charged nitrogen.
Carboxylic Acids to Esters: Acid-Catalyzed (Fischer) Esterification Mechanism01:13

Carboxylic Acids to Esters: Acid-Catalyzed (Fischer) Esterification Mechanism

Carboxylic acids react with alcohols to yield esters via an acid-catalyzed condensation reaction called Fischer esterification. This is a nucleophilic acyl substitution reaction that proceeds via a tetrahedral intermediate, where a water molecule is eliminated as the leaving group.
α-Bromination of Carboxylic Acids: Hell–Volhard–Zelinski Reaction01:15

α-Bromination of Carboxylic Acids: Hell–Volhard–Zelinski Reaction

The method to achieve α-brominated carboxylic acids using a mixture of phosphorus tribromide and bromine is known as the Hell–Volhard–Zelinski reaction. The reaction is catalyzed by phosphorus tribromide, which can be used directly or produced in situ from red phosphorus and bromine. The mechanism comprises PBr3 catalyzed conversion of acid to acid bromide and hydrogen bromide. The acid bromide enolizes to its enol form in the presence of HBr. The nucleophilic enol attacks the bromine molecule...
Esters to Carboxylic Acids: Acid-Catalyzed Hydrolysis01:13

Esters to Carboxylic Acids: Acid-Catalyzed Hydrolysis

Hydrolysis of esters under acidic conditions proceeds through a nucleophilic acyl substitution. In the presence of excess water, the reaction proceeds in a reversible manner, forming carboxylic acids and alcohols.
During hydrolysis, the ester is first activated towards nucleophilic attack through the protonation of the carboxyl oxygen atom by the acid catalyst. The protonation makes the ester carbonyl carbon more electrophilic. In the next step, water acts as a nucleophile and adds to the...