Organic Chemistry: E1 Reaction with Alkyl Halides & Reaction Coordinate

The E1 reaction with an alkyl halide occurs in two steps. In the first step, only the alkyl halide reacts. This step is the rate determining (or slow) step and involves dissociation of halide to form a carbocation intermediate. A carbocation is high in potential energy so its formation is slow. The second step, the loss of a proton from a carbon adjacent to the carbocation gives an alkene. This is a fast step since the high energy carbocation is converted to a stable alkene. In the iPhone app "Tap OChem" more details for the E1 and many more reactions (over 60 animations and more in future updates) are discussed. A list of the animations that are included in the iPhone app are listed at www.TapOChem.com. The App may be purchased at the Apple App Store.