Tetramethylethylene is a
hydrocarbon
In organic chemistry, a hydrocarbon is an organic compound consisting entirely of hydrogen and carbon. Hydrocarbons are examples of group 14 hydrides. Hydrocarbons are generally colourless and hydrophobic, and their odors are usually weak or ...
with the formula Me
2C=CMe
2 (Me =
methyl). A colorless liquid, it is the simplest tetrasubstituted
alkene
In organic chemistry, an alkene is a hydrocarbon containing a carbon–carbon double bond.
Alkene is often used as synonym of olefin, that is, any hydrocarbon containing one or more double bonds.H. Stephen Stoker (2015): General, Organic, an ...
.
Synthesis and reactions
It is prepared by base-catalyzed isomerization of 2,3-dimethyl-1-butene.
Tetramethylethylene forms
metal-alkene complexes with low-valent metals and reacts with
diborane
Diborane(6), generally known as diborane, is the chemical compound with the formula B2H6. It is a toxic, colorless, and pyrophoric gas with a repulsively sweet odor. Diborane is a key boron compound with a variety of applications. It has attracte ...
to give the monoalkyborane known as
thexylborane.
[{{cite book, doi=10.1002/9780470132593.ch22, time=Di-μ-Chloro-Bis(η4-1,5-Cyclooctadiene)-Dirhodium(I), title=Inorganic Syntheses, pages=88–90, year=1990, volume=28, last1=Giordano, first1=G., last2=Crabtree, first2=R. H., chapter=Di-μ-Chloro-Bis(η4 -1,5-Cyclooctadiene)-Dirhodium(I), isbn=9780470132593]
References
Alkenes