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Tetracyanoethylene (TCNE) is
organic compound In chemistry, organic compounds are generally any chemical compounds that contain carbon-hydrogen or carbon-carbon bonds. Due to carbon's ability to catenate (form chains with other carbon atoms), millions of organic compounds are known. Th ...
with the formula . It is a colorless solid, although samples are often off-white. It is an important member of the cyanocarbons.


Synthesis and reactions

TCNE is prepared by brominating malononitrile in the presence of
potassium bromide Potassium bromide ( K Br) is a salt, widely used as an anticonvulsant and a sedative in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with over-the-counter use extending to 1975 in the US. Its action is due to the bromide ion ( sodium bromide is equa ...
to give the KBr-complex, and dehalogenating with
copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pink ...
. Oxidation of TCNE with
hydrogen peroxide Hydrogen peroxide is a chemical compound with the formula . In its pure form, it is a very pale blue liquid that is slightly more viscous than water. It is used as an oxidizer, bleaching agent, and antiseptic, usually as a dilute solution (3 ...
gives the corresponding
epoxide In organic chemistry, an epoxide is a cyclic ether () with a three-atom ring. This ring approximates an equilateral triangle, which makes it strained, and hence highly reactive, more so than other ethers. They are produced on a large scale ...
, which has unusual properties. In the presence of base, TCNE reacts with malononitrile to give salts of pentacyanopropenide: :C2(CN)2 + CH2(CN)2 -> NC)2C-C(CN)-C(CN)2 + CN- + 2H+


Redox chemistry

TCNE is an
electron acceptor An electron acceptor is a chemical entity that accepts electrons transferred to it from another compound. It is an oxidizing agent that, by virtue of its accepting electrons, is itself reduced in the process. Electron acceptors are sometimes mista ...
. Cyano groups have low energy π* orbitals, and the presence of four such groups, with their π systems (conjugated) to the central
double bond In chemistry, a double bond is a covalent bond between two atoms involving four bonding electrons as opposed to two in a single bond. Double bonds occur most commonly between two carbon atoms, for example in alkenes. Many double bonds exist betwee ...
, gives rise to an electrophilic
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 ...
. TCNE is reduced at -0.27 V vs ferrocene/
ferrocenium Ferrocenium tetrafluoroborate is an organometallic compound with the formula e(C5H5)2F4. This salt is composed of the cation e(C5H5)2sup>+ and the tetrafluoroborate anion (). The related hexafluorophosphate is also a popular reagent with simi ...
: :C2(CN)4 + e- -> 2(CN)4 Because of its ability to accept an electron, TCNE has been used to prepare numerous
charge-transfer salt In chemistry, a charge-transfer (CT) complex or electron-donor-acceptor complex describes a type of supramolecular assembly of two or more molecules or ions. The assembly consists of two molecules that self-attract through electrostatic forces ...
s.


Safety

TCNE hydrolyzes in moist air to give
hydrogen cyanide Hydrogen cyanide, sometimes called prussic acid, is a chemical compound with the formula HCN and structure . It is a colorless, extremely poisonous, and flammable liquid that boils slightly above room temperature, at . HCN is produced on a ...
and should be handled accordingly.


References

{{reflist Alkene derivatives Nitriles Superconductors