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Chemistry LibreTexts

Mechanism

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The mechanism of a reaction is a graphical depiction of how each step of the reaction occurs at the molecular level, using curved arrows to show the movement of pairs of electrons and fish hooks to show the movement of single electrons.

mechanism1.png

eg. 1:

mechanism2.png

A single-step mechanism has been proposed for this reaction.

mechanism3.png

eg. 2:

mechanism4.png

A three-step mechanism has been proposed for this reaction.

Step 1:

mechanism5.png

Step 2:

mechanism6.png

Step 3:

mechanism7.png

The mechanism of a reaction is merely a theory and, therefore, can not be proven and can only be disproven. The proposed mechanism of a reaction must be consistent with all available empirical data on the reaction and must not violate the fundamental rules of chemical bonding.


This page titled Mechanism is shared under a All Rights Reserved (used with permission) license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Gamini Gunawardena via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform.

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