Sure,But doesnt such a simplification follow along the lines of RP + I + H20 = HI?
And nothing else realy matters?
I find it hard to accept that all of these rxns can occur
and yet only the H and the I from the formed HI have any bearing on what happens to the ephedrine e.g forming the intermediate iodo-compounds and then the reduction itself.
If this was the case, what would be the reasoning behind such a sluggish,low yielding rxn when a only massive excess of premade HI is used (no regenerative agent) as aposed to it being formed in situ?
Are we now saying that the wet rxn and the dry rxn both
follow the same mechanism in regards to reducing ephedrine
e.g follow your statement above?
If so,what makes one better then the other,seeing as it is only a matter of HI production that counts,and that by accounting for enough reactants ,both schemes will produce HI and a full reduction should occur no matter what.
I see no mention of PI3,no mention of iodic or periodic acids and many other inorganic by-products or side rxns which I have read about in relation to these rxns.
Why do we have to accept such a simplistic version of events when it comes to using these schemes in a reduction.
I have no problem with what your find tells us,but to me it merely points out an order of rxns which have been common knowledge all along.
I feel the real issue is how such proceedings,effect the rate/degree/by-products of the halogenation and reduction of organic compounds,and that the simplistic reasoning you have used above with the old HI + Ephedrine = Water and meth quote, is how the abundance of misinformation/misinterpritation has come about.
It is obviously not so simple is it?
Rhod` Im sorry if I sound belligerent.
I dont want to seem like I know the answers.
It just frustrates me so much, when I have personally sought
a simple explination for the myriad of different results we encounter when talking about this rxn, and all I ever seem to get back is this simplification, which would be lovely if it was so simple(I simply dump my ephedrine in a bucket of hydriodic acid and be done
),but if translated to real world findings leaves a whole lot more blanks than the reasoning behind the regenerative role of Phosphorus in HI production could ever dream of leaving.
Surely you have a paper or simular,depicting these rxns in as much detail as the one above.This would be nice.
All the lit` I have scanned pretty much pumps out the same chemical equations and leavs it at that.
End rant.