Chemistry A-Level
curly arrow mechanism
What curly arrow mechanism means in Chemistry A-Level, as defined for AQA.
Definition of curly arrow mechanism
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Reference: AQA
An arrow runs from inside the hexagon to the nitrogen or to the acylium carbon, then a second arrow runs from the C-H bond at that carbon back into the hexagon, releasing H⁺.
Topics that use curly arrow mechanism
- Electrophilic substitution (A-level only) (AQA A-Level)
Related terms
- acylium ion
- electrophile
- Halogen carrier
- nitration conditions
- nitronium ion generation
- positively charged intermediate
- reduction to amines
- temperature control
Using curly arrow mechanism in the exam
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