The iodide reduction of A-(substituted phenyl)-5,S-dimethylsulfilimmonium salts (aqueous solution, 25 °C, µ = 1.0 with KC1) is first order in proton activity in the pH range 0.5-3.0. The reduction of A-phenyl-S,S-dimethylsulfilimmonium chloride is also catalyzed by general acids with a Bronsted a of 0.7. Electron-donating groups on the aniline leaving group accelerate the rate of the reduction with a /3lg = 0.54. Rate constants for the reduction of sulfilimines derived from higher pXa amines are also linear with proton activity. For A-benzyl-S'.S'-dimethylsulfilimmonium chloride, no general catalysis is observed. For sulfilimines with unhindered primary amines as leaving group, a small /3lg of about -0.1 is observed. For sulfilimines with benzamide and sulfonamide leaving groups the proton-catalyzed reaction contains both firstand second-order terms in proton activity. The rate of the reduction of the sulfilimine ylide is accelerated by electron-withdrawing substituents with dig = -0.5. These data are interpreted in terms of a mechanism involving rate-limiting partitioning of a common tetracoordinate sulfurane intermediate. For aniline leaving groups, proton transfer to the neutral sulfurane is suggested to be rate limiting. For higher pKa leaving groups, the protonated sulfurane is solvent equilibrated and breakdown of this intermediate becomes rate limiting. For sulfilimines with very low pAfa leaving groups, the predominant pathway is suggested to involve uncatalyzed breakdown of the neutral sulfurane intermediate with expulsion of sulfonamide anion. A parallel pathway involving the general catalyzed breakdown of the neutral sulfurane is also suggested to account for the greater than first-order proton dependence.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.