Hydrolysis of trioxaadamantane ortho esters. I. Dialkoxycarbocation – ortho ester equilibrium and acidity function

3-Aryl-2,4,10-trioxaadamantane ortho esters (T) undergo a rapid equilibration with a ring-opened dioxan-2-ylium ion (DH+) prior to hydrolysis to product (a 1,3,5-cyclohexanetriol monobenzoate). The cation is stable in concentrated H2SO4 solutions where it has been characterized by nmr spectroscopy. It is observed using uv spectroscopy in dilute acids, and the ratio [DH+]/[T] at equilibrium has been measured as a function of acidity. Reversibility of the ring opening is established by the pattern of plots of cation absorbance versus acid concentration and by the observation that solutions containing cation on neutralization or dilution yield ortho ester, not hydrolysis product. Equilibrium constants for the reaction [Formula: see text] have been measured by obtaining the acidity function HT for this system. The effects of the aromatic substituent and the steepness of the acidity function plot versus acid concentration are interpreted in terms of a strong intramolecular interaction in the cation between the cationic center and the hydroxyl oxygen.