homolysis reaction of pure water. Scope A variation of this reaction was used as one of the steps in the total synthesis of azadirachtin: In another variation the reagent is the imidazole 1,1'-thiocarbonyldiimidazole (TCDI), for example in the total synthesis of pallescensin B. TCDI is especially good to primary alcohols because there is no resonance stabilization of the xanthate because the nitrogen lonepair is involved in the aromatic sextet. The reaction also applies to S-alkylxanthates. With triethylborane as a novel metal-free reagent, the required hydrogen atoms are abstracted from protic solvents, the reactor wall or even (in strictly anhydrous conditions) the borane itself. See also Chugaev elimination References External links Barton-McCombie @ organic-chemistry.org Chemical & Engineering News article on alkylborane reaction Free radical reactions Organic redox reactions Name reactions