Solvolysis

The alcoholysis is the cleavage of a chemical compound by reaction with an alcohol. In this case, a hydrogen atom is formally written in the a "split pieces ", the residual alkoxide is bonded to the other cleavage product. The alcoholysis is covered by the generic term " solvolysis " - a nucleophilic substitution in which the solvent is the nucleophile itself.

Response examples

• In the alcoholysis of carboxylic acid anhydrides, ester and carboxylic acid.
• A carboxylic acid halide reacts with an alcohol to form an ester and hydrogen halide. The reaction of alcohols with carboxylic acid chlorides in the presence of an alkali metal hydroxide is known as the Schotten-Baumann method, thereby produced as a by-product of the halide of the alkali metal (eg sodium chloride).
• Are analog of inorganic acid halides the corresponding esters available; we obtain phosphorus acid esters and hydrogen chloride.
• The alcoholysis of carboxylic acid esters yields an equilibrium mixture of the two kinds of esters, and alcohols. This reaction may be catalyzed by acid or base. In most cases, an ester of a low molecular weight alcohol is converted into an ester of a high molecular weight alcohol, the low molecular weight alcohol is removed by distillation from the reaction mixture - The reversal has industrial importance. Fats ( glycerol esters of fatty acids) - for example, rapeseed oil - are by basic catalysis in the presence of converted from methanol to fatty acid methyl esters ( biodiesel) and glycerol.
• In the alcoholysis of alkyl halides, alkyl sulfonates or sulfates arise ether. Usually used here, however, because of the higher nucleophilicity alcoholates ( Williamson ether synthesis ) instead of the corresponding alcohols.