[NL-bucky]

I am writing a literature thesis on C-F bond activation. I would like to draw some parallels between C-F activation and C-X activation in general. Of course there exists a lot of Pd chemistry in this field, and we would all consider this carbon-halogen activation, I believe. However, would you consider the reaction of a bromoalkane with iodide a C-Br activation? Or would you only speak of "activation" when a catalyst is used?

Thanks for your replies!

[fledarmus]

I would certainly call it a bond activation. Especially since it can be done in situ with catalytic amounts of iodide.

[NL-bucky]

Thank you for your answer.

I would certainly call it a bond activation. Especially since it can be done in situ with catalytic amounts of iodide.

I was just referring to the stochiometric reaction of a bromoalkane with iodide to give the iodoalkane. Just the regular nucleophilic substitution we learn at the beginning of OChem 1.

In other words, does there need to be an activating agent, weakening the specified bond so that it can react easier to call a reaction a bond activation? Or not? In the latter case, all reactions could be called a bond activation, could they? As long as any bonds are broken that is.

[fledarmus]

Reactions are not "bond activations" in isolation, at least in no sense that I've heard the term used. A reaction is called a bond activation because it activates a bond for the next reaction.

If you are trying to run an S_N2 reaction on a bromoalkane and it doesn't work, it is possible that the reason it doesn't work is that the C-Br bond isn't reactive enough. C-I bonds are more reactive to S_N2 reactions than C-Br bonds. So if you are converting your bromoalkane to an iodoalkane in order to make it reactive enough to run a subsequent S_N2 reaction, then you can consider the bromoalkane iodoalkane reaction to be a bond activation.

I guess you could consider any reaction which produces a less stable/more reactive bond in the product from a more stable/less reactive bond in the starting material to be a bond activation, but that would really be stretching the definition in my opinion.