Vinylation
vinylation
[‚vīn·əl′ā·shən]Vinylation
the introduction of the vinyl group —CH=CH2, which is performed in one step. The most important vinylating agents are acetylene, CH≡CH; vinyl halides, CH2=CHX (X is a halogen); and vinyl magnesium bromide (Norman’s reagent), CH2=CHMgBr. Vinylation with acetylene forms the basis of a number of manufacturing processes: vinyl ethers are obtained from alcohols and esters—for example, vinyl acetate—are produced from carboxylic acids. Vinylation of hydrocyanic acid yields acrylonitrile; of hydrogen chloride, vinyl chloride; and of acetylene itself, vinyl acetylene.