The large number of carbonyl compounds which undergo cleavage of the carbon chain when treated with alkalies suggests a cleavage mechanism arising from some property inherent in the carbonyl group. If we consider the cleavage of P-diketones, &keto acids, nitromethyl, cyanomethyl and trihalomethyl ketones, for example, it is apparent that the carbonyl group is the structural element characteristic of the type. It is true also that the ...
