Solution

So, here is the solution of the last mechanism problem:

The only answer came from an anonymous anon and his answer was absolutely right.

P.S. In fact people do this reaction in two steps: first they condense acetone and hydrazine an then it is heated in the presence of ZnCl2. Sorry if I confused some of you by not writing the details of this reaction.

Another mechanism problem

Well, my previous problem was answered very quickly by Greg over at Carbon Tet who published the solution in a very understabdable way.

Another one for those who love solving mechanism problems:

You will have to determine the structure of the product and propose a plausible mechanism for this wonderful transformation.

Hope that this one will be answered as quickly as the previous one.

Just a Mechanism

Try to figure out a plausible mechanism of the following transformation. Note that this problem was taken from the ICho 39 (International Chemistry Olympiad among Highschool Students) Preparatory Problems which will be held at Moscow State University in July. So, shame on you if you can’t solve it!

P.S. Friday Night Retrosynthesis Categoryis renamed to Chalk Talk. Since I am quite busy with my Diploma Project I don’t have much time to do retrosyntheses and post this kind of stuff lately. However,  you can expect to see new retrosynthesis posts from time to time.