Wittig Reaction

In this video, I explain the fundamentals of the Wittig reaction. I describe the advantages, disadvantages, the general scheme, the mechanism, and stereochemical outcomes. General overview of the Wittig reaction 0:00 Definitions of ylide and zwitterion 2:10 Two stages of the Wittig 3:28 Reaction Mechanism (ylide step) 8:47 Observations/Comments 11:52 Stereochemical outcomes 13:50 Questions begin at 16:28 Ranking carbonyl reactivity towards phosphonium ylide 16:28 Which ylide will make the (E) alkene 18:23 Complete mechanism of Wittig [(Z) product] 20:33 Complete mechanism of Wittig [(E) product] 25:26