Hydroboration Part 4

Lesson 4 of 9 • 5 upvotes • 14:00mins

Dhirpal

Mechanism of Hydroboration-oxidation STEP 1. The borane adds to the double bond of an alkene. Because boron is sp² hybridized here, it’s a trigonal planar with empty p orbital which is capable of accepting a pair of electrons. The boron has about six electrons around it and the lack of octets makes it very reactive. In the presence of an alkene, boron gets closer to the carbon on the right side (less substituted) because other carbon has methyl group which is relatively bulky. The π electrons will attack the empty p orbital of the boron and form a bond between the carbon on the right side of the double bond and the boron.