Electronic interactions implied by the non‐additivity of carbon‐13 substituent parameters in 2‐substituted cyclohexanones

The carbon‐13 chemical shifts were assigned for all ring positions in cyclohexanone and 4‐tert‐butylcyclohexanone with H, F, Cl, Br, I, MeO, MeS, MeSe, Me2N, Me or tert‐butyl in the 2‐position. The substituent‐induced shifts were calculated by difference from unsubstituted cyclohexanone or 4‐tert‐butylcyclohexanone. Both stereoisomers (cis and trans) were available for the 4‐tert‐butylcyclohexanones in all but one case. Comparison of the substituent‐induced shifts for the cis (equatorial 2‐substituent) and trans (axial 2‐substituent) isomers provides stereochemical insight into the interactions between the 2‐substituent and the carbonyl group that bring about non‐additivity of the substituent effects. In the 2‐equatorial isomer, the dipole–dipole interaction between the functional groups causes non‐additivities for the C‐2 carbon that depend largely on the electronegativity of the 2‐substituent. In the 2‐axial isomer, hyperconjugation or other orbital interactions between the groups cause non‐additivities for the C‐2 carbon that depend largely on the polarizability in addition to the electronegativity of the 2‐substituent.