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Non Life Sciences => Chemistry => Topic started by: scientizscht on 05/03/2019 11:51:16

Title: What are the different types of organic reactions?
Post by: scientizscht on 05/03/2019 11:51:16

Hello

Is there a complete list of the different types of organic reactions?

Eg we have hydrolysis, oxidation, reduction, hydrogenation, hydroxylation, polymerization, dehydrogenation, etc.

Is there a complete list?

Thanks

Title: Re: What are the different types of organic reactions?
Post by: chiralSPO on 05/03/2019 14:57:40

scientizscht, while I commend your boundless curiosity, I implore you to stop asking for "complete lists" of things that are effectively infinite in scope.

At the level of "hydroxylation, hydrolysis, hydrogenation, dehydrogenation..." the list is endless: "alkylation, amination, azetidination, azidation, borylation, bromination..." and that's just talking about what you are doing to the substrate, not the substrate itself... "alkylation of amides, alkylation of amines, alkylation of arenes, alkylations of alkanes, alkylations of alkynes..." even "alkylation" is a huge overgeneralization--could be methylation, ethylation, propylation, isopropylation, benzylation, butylation...

If you allow for very broad categories, we can make complete lists.

One useful way to categorize organic reactions is:
1) Reactions in which more bonds are broken than formed
2) Reactions in which more bonds are formed than broken
3) Reactions in which the number of bonds broken is the same as the number formed

Another (similar) useful categorization is:
1) Reactions in which there are more product species than starting species (eliminations, fragmentations, ionizations, dissociations)
2) Reactions in which there are more starting species than product species (additions, associations, polymerizations)
3) Reactions in which the number of starting species is the same as the number of product species (substitutions, metathesis, isomerizations)

Another useful categorization is:
1) intermolecular
2) intramolecular

There are also incomplete lists that offer more mechanistic insight, and still span a fairly large portion of reaction space:

For instance:
1) Addition
2) Elimination
3) Substitution
4) Coupling
5) Electrocyclic
6) Isomerization

Title: Re: What are the different types of organic reactions?
Post by: Bored chemist on 05/03/2019 18:47:40

Quote from: scientizscht on 05/03/2019 11:51:16

Is there a complete list of the different types of organic reactions?

No
Well, obviously I can supply you with a complete list, but it won't help much.

(1) reactions that involve boron
(2) reactions that do not involve boron.

Do you not understand why the questions you ask are not going to get a meaningful response?