Enol Reactions at the Alpha Carbon

Enols are compounds with a hydroxyl group attached to a carbon-carbon double bond. They are also called vinyl alcohols. In carbonyl compounds that have an alpha hydrogen, the keto form and the enol form stay in equilibrium through keto-enol tautomerism.

In most cases, the keto tautomer is more co...

Enols, the tautomers of carbonyl compounds, are nucleophilic in nature owing to their electron-rich double bonds.

In addition, the electron-donating resonance effect of the adjacent hydroxyl group leads to substantially greater electron density on the α carbon, making it more reactive than the corresponding alkene.

Enols are key re...