With the support of the Organic Dynamics Program in the Chemistry Division, Professors Gary W. Breton of Berry College will seek to expand our knowledge of the diazetine dioxides, a very specific class of compounds that was discovered in 1971. They received attention in only a few good papers until the discovery that nitric oxide was of great physiological importance and that diazetine dioxides liberate this simple gas. Professor Breton is proposing a more detailed investigation of their chemistry. Experiments and computations to determine the mechanism of decomposition of 1,2-diazetine dioxides will be carried out. These compounds are potenially interesting precursors to nitric oxide under physiological conditions. Different compounds with varying degrees of strain will be prepared and the rates and thermodynamic parameters for the decomposition will be determined and the products characterized. The mechanism of NO extrusion from diazetine dioxide will be studied in conjunction with the effect of strain energy on the rate of NO loss from the 4-membered heterocycles. The results should be a much better understanding of this reaction.
The Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry Program supports Professors Gary W. Breton of Berry College who will undertake a well-designed project that has a strong focus on kinetics and mechanism. The project will provide students with challenges that will present several levels of increasing difficulty. The project is well planned and will likely produce broadly interesting results that will provide for the students involved a sophisticated initiation into modern chemical research. Nitric oxide has important physiological properties, and an ability to tune the production rates from the precursors synthesized could have useful medical implication.
