A Mechanistic Study of the Oxidation of Substituted Benzyl Alcohols with Trichloroisocyanuric Acid

A systematic mechanistic study employing kobs kineticsmeasurements, linear free‐energy relationship, hydrogen kinetic isotope effect and rate law, as well as the Density Functional Theory (DFT) approach (M06‐2x/6‐311G(d,p)) for the oxidation of diverse substituted benzyl alcohols with trichloroisocyanuric acid (TCCA) / H2O in 50 % MeCN / CH2Cl2 at 25.0 °C is present. The kinetic results showed an autocatalytic behavior and a primary kinetic isotope effect (4.22). The linear free‐energy relationship (σ, ρ = ‐1.22) indicated a mechanism change for 4‐CF3, 3‐NO2 and 4‐NO2 substituted benzyl alcohols and a fractional rate law (3.25) for benzyl alcohol. The DFT results indicated Cl2, formed in situ from TCCA and the benzyl alcohol, as the actual oxidizing species. Furthermore, calculations support the kinetic results with high agreement through a transition state that performs a hydride abstraction by autocatalytic Cl2 in the induction zone. In the case of substrates bearing strong electron withdrawing groups, the mechanism changes to hydrogen abstraction from the corresponding benzyl hypochlorite as the main pathway.