The hydrolysis of thioacetic, thiobenzoic, and three substituted thiobenzoic acids in perchloric and sulfuric acids
The rates of hydrolysis of thioacetic, thiobenzoic, and three substituted thiobenzoic acids increase with concentration of solvent sulfuric or perchloric acid to a maximum in 30–40% acid and then decrease. Yates–McClelland r, Bunnett–Olsen [Formula: see text], and Hammett ρ parameters, and entropies of activation indicate an AAC2 mechanism over this range of acid concentrations. In acid concentrations above 50–60% the rates increase sharply and the same mechanistic criteria now indicate an AAc1 mechanism. The difference between the rate–acidity profile of thiobenzoic acid and that of ethyl thiolbenzoate can be explained by the different response of the activity coefficients of their transition states to increase in sulfuric acid concentration.