Kinetic study of the reaction between sodium ethyl xanthogenacetate and alkylamine

Abstract

In this paper the kinetics of the reaction between sodium ethyl xanthogenacetate (NaEtXAc) and six amines was investigated. In order to determine the wavelength for following the reaction, the influence of the structures of reactants on the absorption (at 280 nm) was investigated. The values of rate constants for selected amines, at different temperatures were determined. It was confirmed that the reactions investigated are of the second-order. On the basis of the reaction rate constants and at the different temperatures, several thermodynamic parameters were calculated such as the energy of activation, the frequency factor, the activation entropy, Gibb's free-energy of the activation and the activation enthalpy. By evaluating the obtained results some assumptions that refer to the reaction mechanisms of nucleophilic attack of amine on the thiocarbonyl carbon, as well as forming of an activated complex as a critical step, were made.