Cooperation of the Neutral and the Cationic Leaving Group Pathways in Acid-Catalyzed O-Benzylation of TriBOT.

The reaction profile of acid-catalyzed O-benzylation with 2,4,6-tris(benzyloxy)-1,3,5-triazine (TriBOT) was analyzed to study the reaction kinetics. The first-order kinetic constant for the formation of benzyl cation species from N-protonated TriBOT (neutral leaving group pathway) was estimated and compared with that of the model compound for TriBOT. Since rapid consumption of TriBOT in the late stage could not be explained solely by this pathway, cooperation of another reaction mechanism, the cationic leaving group pathway, was proposed to rationalize the rate acceleration.