Triazines are a class of nitrogen-containing

heterocycle A heterocyclic compound or ring structure is a cyclic compound that has atoms of at least two different elements as members of its ring(s). Heterocyclic chemistry is the branch of organic chemistry dealing with the synthesis, properties, and ...

s. The parent molecules'

molecular formula In chemistry, a chemical formula is a way of presenting information about the chemical proportions of atoms that constitute a particular chemical compound or molecule, using chemical element symbols, numbers, and sometimes also other symbols, ...

is . They exist in three isomeric forms, 1,3,5-triazines being common.

Structure

The triazines have planar six-membered

benzene Benzene is an organic chemical compound with the molecular formula C6H6. The benzene molecule is composed of six carbon atoms joined in a planar ring with one hydrogen atom attached to each. Because it contains only carbon and hydrogen atoms ...

-like ring but with three carbons replaced by nitrogens. The three isomers of triazine are distinguished by the positions of their nitrogen atoms, and are referred to as 1,2,3-triazine, 1,2,4-triazine, and 1,3,5-triazine. Other

aromatic In chemistry, aromaticity is a chemical property of cyclic ( ring-shaped), ''typically'' planar (flat) molecular structures with pi bonds in resonance (those containing delocalized electrons) that gives increased stability compared to satur ...

nitrogen

s are

pyridine Pyridine is a basic heterocyclic organic compound with the chemical formula . It is structurally related to benzene, with one methine group replaced by a nitrogen atom. It is a highly flammable, weakly alkaline, water-miscible liquid with a ...

s with one ring nitrogen atom,

diazine In organic chemistry, diazines are a group of organic compounds having the molecular formula . Each contains a benzene ring in which two of the C-H fragments have been replaced by isolobal nitrogen. There are three structural isomers: * pyridaz ...

s with 2 nitrogen atoms in the ring,

triazole A triazole is a heterocyclic compound featuring a five-membered ring of two carbon atoms and three nitrogen atoms with molecular formula C2H3N3. Triazoles exhibit substantial isomerism, depending on the positioning of the nitrogen atoms within t ...

s with 3 nitrogens in a 5 membered ring, and

tetrazine Tetrazine is a compound that consists of a six-membered aromatic ring containing four nitrogen atoms with the molecular formula C2 H2 N4. The name ''tetrazine'' is used in the nomenclature of derivatives of this compound. Three core-ring isome ...

s with 4 ring nitrogen atoms.

Uses

Melamine

A well known triazine is

melamine Melamine is an organic compound with the formula C3H6N6. This white solid is a trimer of cyanamide, with a 1,3,5-triazine skeleton. Like cyanamide, it contains 67% nitrogen by mass, and its derivatives have fire retardant properties due t ...

(2,4,6-triamino-1,3,5-triazine). With three

amino In chemistry, amines (, ) are compounds and functional groups that contain a basic nitrogen atom with a lone pair. Amines are formally derivatives of ammonia (), wherein one or more hydrogen atoms have been replaced by a substituent ...

substituents, melamine is a precursor to commercial

resins In polymer chemistry and materials science, resin is a solid or highly viscous substance of plant or synthetic origin that is typically convertible into polymers. Resins are usually mixtures of organic compounds. This article focuses on natu ...

Guanamine In organic chemistry, a guanamine is an organic compound with the formula (H2NC)2N3CR. They are heterocycles of the triazine class. Guanamines are closely related to melamine ((H2NC)3N3), except with one amino substituent replaced by an organic ...

s are closely related to melamine, except with one amino substituent replaced by an organic group. This difference is exploited in the use of guanamines to modify the crosslinking density in

melamine resin Melamine resin or melamine formaldehyde (also shortened to melamine) is a resin with melamine rings terminated with multiple hydroxyl groups derived from formaldehyde. This thermosetting plastic material is made from melamine and formaldehyde. ...

s. Some commercially important guanamines are

benzoguanamine Benzoguanamine is an organic compound with the chemical formula (CNH2)2(CC6H5)N3. It is related to melamine but with one amino group replaced by phenyl. Benzoguanamine is used in the manufacturing of melamine resins. Unlike melamine ((CNH2)3N3 ...

and acetoguanamine. GuanamineGeneral

Cyanuric chloride

Another important triazine is

cyanuric chloride Cyanuric chloride is an organic compound with the formula (NCCl)3. This white solid is the chlorinated derivative of 1,3,5-triazine. It is the trimer of cyanogen chloride. Cyanuric chloride is the main precursor to the popular but controver ...

(2,4,6-trichloro-1,3,5-triazine). Chlorine-substituted triazines are components of

reactive dye In a reactive dye, a chromophore (an atom or group whose presence is responsible for the colour of a compound) contains a substituent that reacts with the substrate. Reactive dyes have good fastness properties owing to the covalent bonding that oc ...

s.Horst Tappe, Walter Helmling, Peter Mischke, Karl Rebsamen, Uwe Reiher, Werner Russ, Ludwig Schläfer and Petra Vermehren "Reactive Dyes"in Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry 2000, Wiley-VCH, Weinheim. These compounds react through a chlorine group with hydroxyl groups present in

cellulose Cellulose is an organic compound with the formula , a polysaccharide consisting of a linear chain of several hundred to many thousands of β(1→4) linked D-glucose units. Cellulose is an important structural component of the primary cell w ...

fibres in

nucleophilic substitution In chemistry, a nucleophilic substitution is a class of chemical reactions in which an electron-rich chemical species (known as a nucleophile) replaces a functional group within another electron-deficient molecule (known as the electrophile). The ...

, the other triazine positions contain chromophores. Triazine compounds are often used as the basis for various herbicides.

Other

Triazines also have wide use in the oil and gas and petroleum processing industries as a non-regenerating sulfide removal agent; they are applied to fluid streams to remove hydrogen sulfide gas and mercaptan species, which can decrease the quality of the processed hydrocarbon and be harmful to pipeline and facility infrastructure if not removed.

Synthesis

The more common 1,3,5-isomers are prepared by trimerization of nitrile and

cyanide Cyanide is a naturally occurring, rapidly acting, toxic chemical that can exist in many different forms. In chemistry, a cyanide () is a chemical compound that contains a functional group. This group, known as the cyano group, consists of ...

compounds, although more specialized methods are known. The 1,2,3- and 1,2,4-triazines are more specialized methods. The former family of triazines can be synthesized by thermal rearrangement of 2-azidocyclopropenes. Also mainly of specialized interest, the 1,2,4-isomer is prepared from condensation of 1,2-dicarbonyl compounds with

amidrazone Amidrazones are a class of chemical compounds formally derived from carboxylic acids. Amidrazones can exists in two tautomeric forms: hydrazide imides (RC(=NH)NHNH2) and amide hydrazones (RC(NH2)=NNH2). Uses Some amidrazones have been employed ...

s. A classical synthesis is also the

Bamberger triazine synthesis The Bamberger triazine synthesis in organic chemistry is a classic organic synthesis of a triazine first reported by Eugen Bamberger in 1892.Hassner, A., Stumer, C., ''Organic Synthesis Based on Name Reactions'': 2nd. Ed. Tetrahedron Organic Chemi ...

Reactions

Although triazines are

compounds, their resonance energy is much lower than in

Electrophilic aromatic substitution Electrophilic aromatic substitution is an organic reaction in which an atom that is attached to an aromatic system (usually hydrogen) is replaced by an electrophile. Some of the most important electrophilic aromatic substitutions are aromatic n ...

is difficult but

nucleophilic aromatic substitution A nucleophilic aromatic substitution is a substitution reaction in organic chemistry in which the nucleophile displaces a good leaving group, such as a halide, on an aromatic ring. Aromatic rings are usually nucleophilic, but some aromatic compou ...

easier than typical chlorinated benzenes. 2,4,6-Trichloro-1,3,5-triazine is easily hydrolyzed to

cyanuric acid Cyanuric acid or 1,3,5-triazine-2,4,6-triol is a chemical compound with the formula (CNOH)3. Like many industrially useful chemicals, this triazine has many synonyms. This white, odorless solid finds use as a precursor or a component of bleach ...

by heating with water. 2,4,6-Tris(phenoxy)-1,3,5-triazine results when the trichloride is treated with phenol. With amines, one or more chloride is displaced. The remaining chlorides are reactive, and this theme is the basis of the large field of

s. Cyanuric chloride assists in the

amidation In organic chemistry, an amide, also known as an organic amide or a carboxamide, is a compound with the general formula , where R, R', and R″ represent organic groups or hydrogen atoms. The amide group is called a peptide bond when it is p ...

of carboxylic acids. The 1,2,4-triazines can react with

electron The electron ( or ) is a subatomic particle with a negative one elementary electric charge. Electrons belong to the first generation of the lepton particle family, and are generally thought to be elementary particles because they have no ...

-rich dienophiles in an inverse electron demand Diels-Alder reaction. This forms a bicyclic intermediate which normally then extrudes a molecule of nitrogen gas to form an aromatic ring again. In this way the 1,2,4-triazines can be reacted with alkynes to form pyridine rings. An alternative to using an alkyne is to use

norbornadiene Norbornadiene is an organic compound and a bicyclic hydrocarbon. Norbornadiene is of interest as a metal-binding ligand, whose complexes are useful for homogeneous catalysis. It has been intensively studied owing to its high reactivity and distin ...

which can be thought of as a masked alkyne. In 2007, a method for synthesizing highly porous triazine-based polymers was discovered, and found to be useful (in conjunction with

palladium Palladium is a chemical element with the symbol Pd and atomic number 46. It is a rare and lustrous silvery-white metal discovered in 1803 by the English chemist William Hyde Wollaston. He named it after the asteroid Pallas, which was itself na ...

) for the selective reduction of phenols.

Ligands

A series of 1,2,4-triazine derivatives known as

bis-triazinyl bipyridines The ''bis''-triazinyl bipyridines (BTBPs) are a class of chemical compounds which are tetradentate ligands similar in shape to quaterpyridine. The BTBPs are made by the reaction of hydrazine and a 1,2-diketone (such as hexane-3,4-dione) with ...

(BTPs) have been considered as possible

extractant Extraction in chemistry is a separation process consisting of the separation of a substance from a matrix. Common examples include '' liquid-liquid extraction'', and ''solid phase extraction''. The distribution of a solute between two phases ...

s for use in the advanced nuclear reprocessing. BTPs are molecules containing a

ring bonded to two 1,2,4-triazin-3-yl groups. Triazine-based

ligand In coordination chemistry, a ligand is an ion or molecule ( functional group) that binds to a central metal atom to form a coordination complex. The bonding with the metal generally involves formal donation of one or more of the ligand's elec ...

s have been used to bind three dinuclear

arene Aromatic compounds, also known as "mono- and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons", are organic compounds containing one or more aromatic rings. The parent member of aromatic compounds is benzene. The word "aromatic" originates from the past groupin ...

ruthenium Ruthenium is a chemical element with the symbol Ru and atomic number 44. It is a rare transition metal belonging to the platinum group of the periodic table. Like the other metals of the platinum group, ruthenium is inert to most other chemical ...

(or osmium) compounds to form

metallaprism Coordination cages are three-dimensional ordered structures in solution that act as hosts in host–guest chemistry. They are self-assembled in solution from organometallic precursors, and often rely solely on noncovalent interactions rather than co ...

References

* ''Heterocyclic Chemistry'' T.L. Gilchrist 1985 (1997, )