CBr2

CBr2 is a chemical formula that can represent several different chemical species. The most common interpretation is dibromocarbene, a highly reactive and transient chemical intermediate. Diatomic molecules with the formula CBr2 are not known to be stable under normal conditions. Dibromocarbene is typically generated in situ during chemical reactions. It is an electrophilic species, meaning it readily accepts electrons from other molecules. This reactivity makes it a useful reagent in organic synthesis for reactions such as cyclopropanation, where it can add to double bonds to form cyclopropane rings. The generation of dibromocarbene often involves the dehydrohalogenation of dibromomethane using a strong base, or the thermal decomposition of certain precursors like sodium bromodifluoroacetate. Due to its instability, dibromocarbene is not isolated or stored. Its presence and reactions are inferred from the products of the chemical transformations it participates in. In other contexts, CBr2 could theoretically represent a diatomic molecule consisting of one carbon atom and two bromine atoms, but such a species is not a stable entity and has not been definitively observed.