Synthesis of interstellar propen-2-ol (CH₃C(OH)CH₂) – the simplest enol tautomer of a ketone

Abstract

Enols − tautomers of ketones or aldehydes − are anticipated to be ubiquitous in the interstellar medium and play a key role in the formation of complex organic molecules in...

Preparation of Acetylenediol (HOCCOH) and Glyoxal (HCOCHO) in Interstellar Analog Ices of Carbon Monoxide and Water

“…1,2-ethenediol (HOCHCHOH) and 1,1,2-ethenetriol (HOCHC(OH) 2 ), the enol forms of glycolaldehyde (HCOCH 2 OH) and glycolic acid (HOCH 2 COOH), respectively, have been proposed as key intermediates leading to the prebiotic formation of three-to five-carbon sugars (Ricardo et al 2004;Kim et al 2011;Coggins & Powner 2017) and sugar acids (Mardyukov et al 2021). Gas-phase enols in the ISM exhibit significantly greater stability (Taatjes et al 2005;Abplanalp et al 2016b) because they cannot overcome the high keto-enol tautomerization barriers (230-290 kJ mol −1 ) at low temperatures and pressures (da Silva 2010; Schreiner et al 2011;Wang et al 2023c).…”

“…On the other hand, laboratory studies on interstellar analog ices revealed a facile formation of enols (Figure 1, Table 1). These results suggest that enols should be ubiquitous in hot cores and star-forming regions and readily available for an abiotic synthesis of complex organic molecules (COMs)-organic molecules containing six or more atoms of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, or nitrogen (Herbst & Dishoeck 2009)-in an interstellar environment (Wang et al 2008(Wang et al , 2023b(Wang et al , 2023cKleimeier et al 2020. Once formed in molecular clouds, these molecules can sublime into the gas phase in the star-forming region and be incorporated into asteroids and comets (Cooper et al 2011;Kleimeier et al 2020).…”