Hell-Volhard-Zelinskii Reaction
Although the α-bromination of some carbonyl compounds, such as aldehydes and ketones, can be accomplished with Br2 under acidic conditions, the reaction will generally not occur with carboxylic acids, esters, and amides. Carboxylic acids do not enolize to a sufficient extent since the carboxylic acid proton is preferably removed before an α-hydrogen. However, carboxylic acids, can be brominated in the α-position with a mixture of Br2 and phosphorus tribromide (PBr3) in what is called the Hell-Volhard-Zelinskii reaction.
Mechanism
This reaction is the combination of three separate reaction mechanisms all of which have been previously discussed. The mechanism starts with the reaction of the carboxylic acid with PBr3 to form an acid bromide and HBr. Formation of an acid bromide is vital to this reaction because they lack the acidic carboxylic acid proton and can enolize much more readily making α-bromination possible. Next, HBr catalyzes the tautomerization of the acid bromide into its enol tautomer, acid bromide enol, which subsequently reacts with Br2 to give α-bromination. Lastly, the product undergoes nucleophilic acyl substitution which cause the hydrolysis of the acid bromide to reform the carboxylic acid and the HBr catalyst. Because an enol intermediate is formed, this reaction will form a racemic mixture at the α-carbon.
Examples
Further Reactions of α-Bromo Carboxylic Acids
α-Bromo carboxylic acids are extremely useful synthetic intermediates because the halogen is highly reactive towards SN2 reactions. Having the electrophilic carbon of the carbonyl adjacent to the electrophilic α-carbon attached to the bromine allows an incoming nucleophile to share its charge between the two. This stabilizes the transition state of the SN2 reaction, lowering the energy of activation, and increasing reaction rates. Primary α-Halogenated carbonyls have SN2 reaction rates which are much greater than the corresponding primary aliphatic halogens.
Because bromides are capable of reacting with a wide variety of nucleophiles, α-bromo carboxylic acids serve as important intermediates. Reaction of α-bromo carboxylic acids with an aqueous basic solution followed by an acidic work-up produces α-hydroxy carboxylic acids. Reaction of α-bromo carboxylic acids with an excess of ammonia provides α-amination, which provides a possible route to amino acids.
Example