Thermal decomposition of 2-phenylethanol: A computational study on mechanism

Quantum mechanical calculations for the thermal decomposition of 2-phenylethanol have been performed using the CBS-QB3 method. Based on the potential energy surfaces at the CBS-QB3 level of theory, the preferred reaction channel for the thermal decomposition of 2-phenylethanol was the six-membered cyclic rearrangement reaction and the dehydration reaction to form styrene and H2O. Further quantum chemical calculations of the subsequent reactions followed by the six-membered cyclic rearrange reaction of 2-phenylethanol were carried out and it was revealed that the barrier height for the ring opening reaction was the lowest among all of the other subsequent reactions.