The solvolysis of the series of alkyl chlorosulfates, ROSO2C1, where R = methyl, ethyl, n-propyl, isobutyl, and ~leopentyl, has been studied in 10 M aqueous dioxane. The relatlve reactivities fit well a solvolytic mechanism involving displacenlent by water on carbon, with OSO2CI a s the leaving group. The change in mechanism of solvolysis from bimolecular with the straight-chain chlorosulfates to unimolecular with neopentyl chlorosulfate is shown by the absence of the lyate ion effect and the observation of rearrangement in the latter case.The entropies of activatio~l in chlorosulfate solvolysis appear to be abnormally large. I t isproposed that the abnormal AF indicates a transition state in which both carbon-oxygen and sulfur-chlorine bond weakening occurs. I t is shown that some other solvolytic reactions that are characterized by abnormally high entropies of activation may be interpreted on the basis of multiple bond fission (fragmentation). The mechanism of Sxi reactions is considered in this context.T h e preceding paper (1) considered in detail the reaction of a typical primary alkyl chlorosulfate with nucleophiles. I-Iere we report the results of a solvolytic study on the series of primary alkyl chlorosulfates ROS02C1, where R is methyl, ethyl, n-propyl, isobutyl, and neopent~l.T h e products of reaction of dilute solutions (0.01 M) of the alkyl chlorosulfates in 10 M aqueous dioxane were determined (Table V, Experimental section). The ionic products are I-12S04 and HCI, forined in quantitative yield. The major organic product in each case was the alcohol, xith a trace of olefin as side product. The major reaction is therefore that represented by eq. [I], i.e. a simple hydrolysis, the olefin being formed most probably by a minor competing elimination reaction. In the case of neopentyl chlorosulfate, the alcohol formed is t h a t from rearrangement, viz. t-pentyl alcohol. PI ROSOICI + 21120 + ROH + H2SOa + HCI.T h e kinetic data were measured in 10 M aqueous dioxane, 85.3% dioxane -14.7% water, by weight. The concentration of chlorosulfate employed \vas 0.01 M. Rates were measured co~~ductimetrically. The half-lives of the hydrolyses were found t o vary from the order of a minute in the case of the methyl coil~pound t o several hours for the neopentyl. The pseudo-first-order rate constants were calculated from usual plots which were linear over a t least 75% of reaction and usually over 90% of reaction. Results for hydrolysis a t several temperatures are given in Table I. Rate constants when calculated for each point individually within a run agreed t o f 1% (standard deviation). The reproducibilitjr between runs was generally also f170. The rate constants given in Table I are the values from two separate runs. E, and log A were obtained from a least-square plot. The error in E, is estimated as &0.35 kcal/mole, and in AS*, k l . O entropy units ( e .~. ) .
The Bimoleczilar and the Unimoleczilar MechanismOne of the criteria used in evaluating the mechanism of solvolysis is the lyate ion 'Part 11 in...