A rearrangement reaction is a broad class of organic reactions where the carbon skeleton of a molecule is rearranged to give a structural isomer of the original molecule ^[1] . Often a substituent moves from one atom to another atom in the same molecule. In the example below the substituent R moves from carbon atom 1 to carbon atom 2:

Intermolecular rearrangements also take place.

A rearrangement is not well represented by simple and discrete electron transfers (represented by curly arrows in organic chemistry texts). The actual mechanism of alkyl groups moving, as in Wagner-Meerwein rearrangement, probably involves transfer of the moving alkyl group fluidly along a bond, not ionic bond-breaking and forming. In pericyclic reactions, explanation by orbital interactions give a better picture than simple discrete electron transfers. It is, nevertheless, possible to draw the curly arrows for a sequence of discrete electron transfers that give the same result as a rearrangement reaction, although these are not necessarily realistic.

Some key rearrangement reactions:

• 1,2-rearrangements
• pericyclic reactions
• olefin metathesis

Examples are the Wagner-Meerwein rearrangement:

the Beckmann rearrangement:

and the Claisen rearrangement:

References