Theoretical study of the dependence on substrate of the reactivity of carbenes
Abstract
The transition states for the addition of C(OH)2 and C(NH2)2 to ethylene, hydroxyethylene, and acrolein have been located, using the STO-3G basis set, in order to examine the philicity of both carbenes. It is shown that C(NH2)2 can be classified as a nucleophile and C(OH)2 as an ambiphile. The degree of validity of this classification is discussed.