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Cover Picture: Alcohol Dimer is Requisite to Form an Alkyl Oxonium Ion in the Proton Transfer of a Strong (Photo)Acid to Alcohol (Chem. Eur. J. 13/2016)
Author(s) -
Park SunYoung,
Lee Young Min,
Kwac Kijeong,
Jung Yousung,
Kwon OhHoon
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
chemistry – a european journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Reports
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.687
H-Index - 242
eISSN - 1521-3765
pISSN - 0947-6539
DOI - 10.1002/chem.201600693
Subject(s) - oxonium ion , chemistry , alcohol , alkyl , protonation , molecule , dimer , photochemistry , sulfuric acid , reactivity (psychology) , solvent , quenching (fluorescence) , hydrogen bond , ion , medicinal chemistry , polymer chemistry , fluorescence , organic chemistry , quantum mechanics , medicine , physics , alternative medicine , pathology
The formation of an alkyl oxonium ion , which has long been proposed as a key reaction intermediate in alcohol dehydration, is studied by time‐resolved fluorescence quenching of a strong photoacid. It is revealed for the first time that the collaboration of two alcohol molecules through hydrogen bonding is critical to enhancing their reactivity and promotes the resulting alcohol cluster to form a Brønsted base when reacting with an acid as strong as sulfuric acid. This finding addresses, as in water, the cooperative role of protic solvent molecules to facilitate nonaqueous acid–base reactions. More information can be found in the Communication by Y. Jung, O. H. Kwon et al. on page 4340 ff.