Microwave reactors are common and safe devices that allow for the heating of reactions more rapidly and facilitate the use of solvents above their boiling points, in comparison with conventional heating. Some reactions carried out in microwave reactor give results that are not reproducible using conventional heating when conducted at the same apparent temperature. These results generally manifest as faster apparent reaction rate, and they are poorly understood. We hypothesize that in solutions containing a weakly microwave absorbing solvent and a strongly absorbing solute, that the microwave energy can selectively heat the solute. This selective heating of solutes can lead to an increased local temperature and thus a higher reaction rate. The 1,2-Meisenheimer rearrangement of an amine <i>N-</i>oxide to an <i>N</i>-alkoxy amine in nonpolar solvents was used to test the hypothesis. Preliminary results show that there is a rate enhancement when using microwave heating. Unexpected differences in solvent effects are presented as well.

Broadening the understanding of selective microwave heating on the 1,2-Meisenheimer rearrangement

Macromolecular Chemistry: The Second Century

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ACS Spring 2020 National Meeting & Expo

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