Tautomerism of lactones and related compounds. Mass spectrometric data andtheoretical calculations

Abstract

The enolization degree of lactones and esters is favoured by the oxygen-sulfur exchange in the respective functional groups. The analysis of the corresponding mass spectra has allowed unambiguous assignment of some fragments to specific tautomers and establishment of an acceptable correlation between ion abundances ratios and AM1 theoretical calculations. This supports mass spectrometry as an adequate tool to evaluate the tautomerism of neutral species.