The course of the mercuric acetate oxidation of tertiary amines has been studied intensively by employing a series of piperidines in which alkyl substitution on the ring has been varied systematically with respect to both position and degree. As a result of this study we are now in a position to predict with some degree of assurance the fate of a given substituted piperidine when subjected to mercuric acetate oxidation. Moreover, we have advanced ...
