Gas‐Phase Synthesis and Reactivity of the Lithium Acetate Enolate Anion, ⁻CH₂CO₂Li

Abstract

Aerial pingpong: The lithium acetate enolate anion, the prototypical lithium salt of an alpha-deprotonated carboxylate, was prepared in the gas phase by electrospray ionization (ESI) and collision-induced ionization (CID). Its structure, reactivity, and energetics are presented along with the results of high-level computations.