Kinetics of the Heck reaction in biphasic organic-ethylene glycol medium

PdCl 2 (bipy) was found to be an efficient and stable catalyst in biphasic medium (organic-glycol) for the Heck reaction. The kinetics of the Heck coupling of styrene with iodobenzene using the same catalyst was studied in a biphasic medium in a temperature range of 393–413 K. The rate was found to have a first order dependence tending to a fractional order, on the iodobenzene as well as catalyst concentration. The rate was found to have a complex dependence on the styrene concentration and passes through a maximum, showing typical substrate inhibition kinetics. The rate had a first order dependence on the base (morpholine) concentration. The trends observed for the influence of the different parameters on the activity of the catalyst are in agreement with the established mechanism for Heck reaction. An empirical rate model has been proposed to fit the observed rate data. The activation energy was found to be 72.91 kJ/mol. This is the first time that kinetic modeling of Heck reaction in a biphasic medium (organic-glycol) has been attempted.