EXAMPLE OF VARIOUS NAMED ORGANIC REACTIONS E.G.

, GRIGNARD
REACTIONS, ALDOL AND RELATED REACTIONS
Grignard Reagent

Grignard reagents are extremely useful organometallic compounds in the field of organic
chemistry. They exhibit strong nucleophilic qualities and also have the ability to form new
carbon-carbon bonds. Therefore, they display qualities that are also exhibited by organolithium
reagents and the two reagents are considered similar.

What are Grignard Reagents?

A Grignard reagent is an organomagnesium compound which can be described by the chemical

formula ‘R-Mg-X’ where R refers to an alkyl or aryl group and X refers to a halogen. They are
generally produced by reacting an aryl halide or an alkyl halide with magnesium.

These reagents were discovered by the French chemist Victor Grignard, who won the Nobel
Prize in Chemistry in the year 1912 for his work on these compounds.

Grignard reagents (RMgX) are commonly used for organic synthesis. However, these highly
reactive compounds are supplied inflammable solvents, which cause extra complexity in their
transport. Herein we note that Grignard reagents with linear alkyl chains can be trapped and
stabilized by the macrocyclic host pillar arene while retaining their reactivity.

The Grignard reaction is an organic reaction used to produce a variety of products through the
reaction of an organomagnesium compound, also known as an electrophilic “Grignard reagent,”
followed by an acidic reaction. The Grignard reagent is formed by the reaction of an alkyl or aryl
halide with magnesium metal via a radical mechanism.

An illustration detailing the preparation of these reagents is provided below.

 The quality testing of the synthesized Grignard reagents is done via titrations involving protic
reagents that do not contain water (since these reagents are highly sensitive to oxygen and water)
and a colour indicator. One suitable compound for these titrations is methanol.

 Reactions of Grignard Reagents

During reactions involving Grignard reagents, it is necessary to ensure that no water is present
which would otherwise cause the reagent to decompose rapidly. Therefore, the majority of
Grignard reactions occur in solvents such as anhydrous diethyl ether or tetrahydrofuran because
the oxygen in these solvents stabilizes the magnesium reagent.

Grignard reagents are very important reagents in organic chemistry since they can be reacted
with a wide range of compounds to form different products. Some of the reactions of these
reagents are listed below.

1. Reactions with Carbonyl Group

These reagents form various products when reacted with different carbonyl compounds. The
most common reaction of Grignard reagents is the alkylation of ketones and aldehydes with the
help of R-Mg-X.
This reaction depicted above is also referred to as the Grignard reaction. The solvents that are
used in this reaction include tetrahydrofuran and diethyl ether.

2. Reactions with Non-Carbon Electrophiles

For the formation of new carbon-heteroatom bonds, Grignard reagents and some
organolithium compounds are very useful. These reagents can also undergo a transmetallation
reaction with cadmium chloride, yielding dialkyl cadmium. This reaction can be written as
follows.

2R-Mg-X + CdCl2 → R2Cd + 2Mg(X)Cl

Alkyl chains can be attached to many metals and metalloids with the help of these reagents.

3. Reactions with Organic Halides

Typically, these reagents are quite unreactive towards organic halides which highly contrasts
their behaviour towards other halides. However, carbon-carbon coupling reactions occur with
Grignard reagents acting as a reactant when a metal catalyst is introduced.

An example of such a coupling reaction is the reaction between methyl p-chlorobenzoate and
nonyl magnesium bromide which yields the compound p-nonyl benzoic acid in the presence of
the catalyst – Tris(acetylaceto) iron(III).

4. Reaction between Acetone and Methyl Magnesium Chloride

The reaction of methyl magnesium bromide with acetone followed by hydrolysis gives tertiary
alcohol. Acetone reacts with methyl magnesium bromide followed by hydrolysis to give
secondary alcohols.

Reaction between Acetone and methyl Magnesium Chloride

5. Industrial Reactions

For the production of Tamoxifen, a type of medication used to prevent and treat breast cancer,
the Grignard reagent is a vital part of the non-stereoselective process.

An illustration detailing the Grignard reaction that takes place in the manufacturing process of
tamoxifen can be found above.

Reactions of Grignard Reagents

 All about The Reactions of Grignard Reagents
 Grignard reagents are excellent carbon-based nucleophiles as well as strong bases.
 They will add to aldehydes and ketones to form alcohols (after a protonation step)
 They will add twice to esters to give tertiary alcohols.
 They will add to the less-substituted side of epoxides
 Grignard reagents will also react with carbon dioxide (CO2) to give carboxylic acids
(after acid workup).
 Grignard reagents will not perform SN2 reactions with alkyl halides. They are also not
compatible with carboxylic acids or alcohols.

 Aldol Condensation

Aldol condensation is a reaction that occurs when an α-hydrogen aldehyde reacts with a dilute
base to produce β-hydroxy aldehydes termed aldols.

The condensation of two different aldehydes and ketones is known as crossed aldol
condensation. It provides a mixture of four products when both of them include α-hydrogen
atoms.
 Clemmensen Reduction

Aldehydes or ketones can be converted to alkanes via the Clemmensen reaction, which involves
zinc amalgam and hydrochloric acid. The Clemmensen reduction is given the name after a
Danish chemist, Erik Christian Clemmensen.

This reaction is particularly efficient in aryl-alkyl ketones reduction produced in Friedel-Crafts

acylation. The reduction of cyclic ketones or aliphatic compounds with zinc metal provides
optimal results from the reaction.

 Ozonolysis
The process of using ozone to break the unsaturated bonds in alkenes, alkynes, and azo
compounds (compounds with the functional diazenyl functional group) is known as ozonolysis.
This is an organic redox reaction.

Alkenes can be oxidised by ozone to produce alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, or carboxylic acids.
Alkynes are subjected to ozonolysis to produce acid anhydrides or diketones. The acid anhydride
undergoes hydrolysis to produce two carboxylic acids if water is present in the reaction.
Elastomer ozonolysis is also referred to as ozone cracking. The double bonds in elastomers are
broken by a trace amount of ozone gas in the atmosphere. The ozonolysis of azo compounds
produces nitrosamines.
 Fischer Esterification

Fischer esterification is an organic reaction used to convert carboxylic acids in the presence of
excess alcohol and a potent acid catalyst, producing an ester as the end product. This ester is
produced along with water. Below are a few examples of Fischer esterification reactions.
Azeotropic distillation or adsorption using molecular sieves are two methods used for removing
water from the system during this esterification process. It serves as an explanation of a
nucleophilic acyl substitution reaction. The substitution is focused on the nucleophilicity of the
alcohol and the electron affinity of the carbonyl carbon.

List of Other Named Reactions

 Fischer Indole Synthesis

 Walden Inversion
 Perkin Reaction Mechanism
 Diels-Alder Reaction Mechanism
 Michael Addition Mechanism
 Heck Reaction
 Mannich Reaction Mechanism
 Hydroboration oxidation reaction
 Claisen condensation
 Lindlar Catalyst
 Maillard Reaction
 Robinson Annulation
 Woodward Reaction
 Oppenauer Oxidation and so on.