Aminolysis of Benzyl 2-Pyridyl Thionocarbonate and t-Butyl 2-Pyridyl Thionocarbonate: Effects of Nonleaving Groups on Reactivity and Reaction Mechanism

A kinetic study is reported for nucleophilic substitution reactions of benzyl 2-pyridyl thionocarbonate (5b) and t-butyl 2-pyridyl thionocarbonate (6b) with a series of alicyclic secondary amines in $H_2O$ at $25.0^{\circ}C$. General-base catalysis, which has often been reported to occur for aminolysis of esters possessing a C=S electrophilic center, is absent for the reactions of 5b and 6b. The Br${\o}$nsted-type plots for the reactions of 5b and 6b are linear with ${\beta}_{nuc}$ = 0.29 and 0.43, respectively, indicating that the reactions of 5b proceed through a stepwise mechanism with formation of a zwitterionic tetrahedral intermediate ($T^{\pm}$) being the rate-determining step while those of 6b proceed through a concerted mechanism. The reactivity of 5b and 6b is similar to that of their oxygen analogues (i.e., benzyl 2-pyridyl carbonate 5a and t-butyl 2-pyridyl carbonate 6a, respectively), indicating that the effect of modification of the electrophilic center from C=O to C=S (i.e., from 5a to 5b and from 6a to 6b) on reactivity is insignificant. In contrast, 6b is much less reactive than 5b, indicating that the replacement of the $PhCH_2$ in 5b by the t-Bu in 6b results in a significant decrease in reactivity as well as a change in the reaction mechanism (i.e., from a stepwise mechanism to a concerted pathway). It has been concluded that the contrasting reactivity and reaction mechanism for the reactions of 5b and 6b are not due to the electronic effects of $PhCH_2$ and t-Bu but are caused by the large steric hindrance exerted by the bulky t-Bu in 6b.