The kinetics and energetics of the 1,2-rearrangements of alkyl- and alkylchlorocarbenes have been much studied, both experimentally and computationally. 1 Benzylchlorocarbene (1), in particular, attracted great attention due to the possible occurrence of quantum mechanical tunneling (QMT) coincident with its 1,2-H shift to β-chlorostyrene. 2., and However, the most recent experiments do not provide support for QMT in this reaction at ambient or near-ambient temperatures. ...
