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Chemistry · Glossary

What is Ketenes and the Wolff rearrangement?

Also known as: ketene · Wolff rearrangement

Definition 27.22 University Chemistry — Year 3 · Chapter 27 — Radicals, Carbenes and Rearrangements

A ketene is a compound R2C=C=O\mathrm{R_2C{=}C{=}O}. In the Wolff rearrangement an α\alpha-diazoketone loses dinitrogen while the group on the carbonyl carbon migrates, giving a ketene, which adds water, an alcohol or an amine.

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