Textbook aromatic substitution mechanism overthrown

Shallow depth of field image showing close up of books piled high on desk and artificial lens flair obscuring dreamy style background

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Established intermediate in nucleophilic aromatic substitution found to be a rare exception rather than the rule

The classic nucleophilic aromatic substitution (SNAr) mechanism – described in all undergraduate textbooks as two-step process – doesn’t apply to most molecules, US researchers have revealed.