Perfluoroalkyl Grignard Reagents: NMR Study of 1-Heptafluoropropylmagnesium Chloride in Solution

We report on the generation of a perfluoroalkyl Grignard reagent ((RMgX)-R-F) by exchange reaction between a perfluoroalkyl iodide (R-F - I) and a Grignard reagent (RMgX). F-19 NMR was applied to monitor the generation of n-C3F7MgCl. Additional NMR techniques, including F-19 COSY, NOESY, and pulsed gradient spin-echo (PGSE) diffusion NMR, were invoked to assign peaks observed in F-19 spectrum. Schlenk equilibrium was observed and was significantly influenced by solvent, diethyl ether, or THF.